JD Vance says Marjorie Taylor Greene did 'nothing wrong' in appearing at white nationalist conference
Ohio Republican Senate candidate JD Vance on Monday night defended his "friend" (and supporter) Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) by claiming "she did nothing wrong" in speaking at a white nationalist's conference last month, HuffPost reports.
Greene spoke at the America First Political Action Conference, where participants "hailed Russian President Vladimir Putin as a hero and chanted his name," HuffPost writes. The organizer of the conference — Nicholas Fuentes — is a prominent white nationalist activist, per The Washington Post.
The congresswoman was later condemned for her participation by members of her own party, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who said "There's no place in the Republican Party for white supremacists or anti-Semitism." House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) described Greene's attendance as "appalling." And Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) called Greene — and fellow conference participant Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) – "morons."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"I have morons on my team," Romney said, per the Post.
So it might seem all the more surprising that, at a GOP candidates' debate in Ohio, Vance stood by Greene's decision.
"She is my friend, and she did nothing wrong," Vance told the crowd. "I'm absolutely not going to throw her under the bus, or anybody else who is a friend of mine." In January, Greene endorsed Vance in his Senate bid.
Vance had also said it was unfair to hold only Republicans and not Democrats to "guilt by association" standards. Marjorie appeared at a conference "where somebody said something bad," but "did she say something bad?" he continued. "I actually watched her remarks, I agreed with nearly every word that she said."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
"There's no business in the world that asks you to stab your friends in the back like politics. I absolutely refuse to do it to Marjorie Taylor Greene."
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Who were the ‘weekend snipers’ of Sarajevo?Under the Radar Italian authorities launch investigation into allegations far-right gun enthusiasts paid to travel to Bosnian capital and shoot civilians ‘for fun’ during the four-year siege
-
A free speech debate is raging over sign language at the White HouseTalking Points The administration has been accused of excluding deaf Americans from press briefings
-
Glinda vs. Elphaba, Jennifer Lawrence vs. postpartum depression and wilderness vs. progress in November moviesthe week recommends This month’s new releases include ‘Wicked: For Good,’ ‘Die My Love’ and ‘Train Dreams’
-
Newsom slams Trump’s climate denial at COP30speed read Trump, who has called climate change a ‘hoax,’ declined to send any officials to this week’s summit
-
UK, Colombia halt intel to US over boat attacksSpeed Read Both countries have suspended intelligence sharing with the US over the bombing of civilian boats suspected of drug smuggling
-
Trump pardons 2020 fake electors, other GOP alliesSpeed Read The president pardoned Rudy Giuliani and more who tried to overturn his 2020 election loss
-
Supreme Court to decide on mail-in ballot limitsSpeed Read The court will determine whether states can count mail-in ballots received after Election Day
-
Democrats split as Senate votes to end shutdownSpeed Read The proposed deal does not extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, the Democrats’ main demand
-
USDA orders states to ‘undo’ full SNAP paymentsSpeed Read The Trump administration is telling states not to pay full November food stamp benefits
-
Senate takes first step to end record shutdownSpeed Read Eight senators in the Democratic caucus voted with Republicans to advance legislation to reopen the government
-
Has Zohran Mamdani shown the Democrats how to win again?Today’s Big Question New York City mayoral election touted as victory for left-wing populists but moderate centrist wins elsewhere present more complex path for Democratic Party
