Conservative commentator Megyn Kelly pressed Vice President JD Vance on the growing split within the Republican Party over the Trump administration’s military operation in Iran.
Kelly described the relationships within the party as a “civil war,” saying that, as a right-leaning independent, she would rather argue with Democrats than Republicans. She said Republicans who disagree with President Donald Trump’s Iran war feel “betrayed” and gave Vance an opportunity to respond to those critics.
“Even if you disagree with this particular action, it’s completely ridiculous to pick up your marbles and go home,” Vance said on The Megyn Kelly Show Tuesday. “That’s not how politics works.”
Vance elaborated on this point, saying he’s been listening to the debates and conversations about the administration’s policies on a variety of issues, including immigration, taxes, and foreign affairs.
“I’ve been very much on the inside on a lot of these debates and conversations,” Vance said. “The way that politics works is that you have to stay engaged in the process. You absolutely have to make your voice heard, but right now, right now we have a very good deal for the American people.”
Trump announced on Saturday that the United States reached a peace deal with Iran. Vance confirmed in an interview with ABC News on Monday that the deal was “already signed” digitally, as the vice president will represent the U.S. at the formal signing in Geneva on Friday.
Since the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran in late February, the administration has received criticism from some of Trump’s allies, including Kelly, Tucker Carlson, and Candace Owens.
The conservative commentators argue Trump went back on his promise of there being no new foreign wars when he returned to the White House. The group is also critical of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military actions in Gaza.
Vance’s appearance on Kelly’s podcast is part of his media tour to promote his new book, Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith.
When Vance said there needs to be people “pushing back from inside the tit,” Kelly argued she was slammed by Trump for doing that.
Kelly recalled Trump’s comments in response to her criticisms that “those who speak ill of Mark Levin are not MAGA.”
Vance defended Trump’s remarks, saying the president was pushing back on what he deemed “unfair” criticisms.
The vice president revealed to Kelly that he told Trump he would be appearing on her show to defend the administration’s agenda, in which the president told him, “Absolutely, I love that.”
“Because he engages. He is going to criticize you when he disagrees with you. He is going to say nice things about you when he agrees with you,” Vance said. “But that is actually what I love about the president is that he’s not like viewing these debates from the outside. He’s participating in them himself.”
Vance said his “frustration” with Republicans who are “noninterventionist” is that they are giving up on the party over one policy disagreement with the administration.
“The reason why neocons are so much more effective in politics than the people on the other side in our coalition is because they play the game,” Vance said. “They get disappointed, they make their criticisms, and they go back to fight another day.”
Vance called the approach “immature,” saying it’s a way to allow “your enemies” to always win, which Kelly agreed with.
The vice president argued the coalition that elected the Trump-Vance ticket included Republicans with differing opinions on Iran and Israel to underscore his point that Republicans shouldn’t give up on the party or the president.
VANCE SAYS CHANGING HIS TUNE ON TRUMP WAS A SIGN OF ‘HUMILITY’
“The coalition that made Donald Trump the president of the United States and JD Vance the vice president of the United States, people have to remember this, it was Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan,” he said. “It was also Mark Levin.”
“You can’t just quit politics because the leader of a country of 330 million people makes a decision that you disagree with,” Vance added.