Vice President JD Vance attempted to contact senior officials in Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign to offer strategic advice on how to defeat Donald Trump, according to an investigation published by Vanity Fair magazine.
According to the report, Vance made a striking statement at the time: "I hate Hillary, but I hate Trump more."
In private conversations, he emphasized: "Trump can't win. He can't win. Hillary is going to lose, but she doesn't have to."
The findings reveal that Vance urged Clinton to completely overhaul her schedule and immediately visit key working-class swing states.
"She needs to come here instead of being down in Miami," Vance told an intermediary. He specified Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, explaining that Clinton needed to speak directly to local residents.
In sharp language, Vance argued that the Democratic candidate should publicly apologize for her past support of the Iraq War. "She needs to come here and apologize for the Iraq War," Vance demanded in the conversations. "Apologize for sending so many people, my community, all the people in all these states whose sons and fathers died and everyone just forgot about them."
Just six weeks before Election Day, Vance spoke directly with Jake Sullivan, who was Clinton's senior policy advisor and later became national security advisor under Biden.
During the call, Vance instructed Sullivan that Clinton needed to act urgently to repair the damage from the "basket of deplorables" controversy. A source close to Sullivan confirmed the conversation took place and noted that Vance repeatedly said with emphasis: "She has to focus."
The initial outreach to Clinton's team occurred when Vance called an intermediary requesting a direct connection to Sullivan, claiming he was on a "mission" to save the situation.
Vice President spokesperson Taylor Van Kirk responded to the findings: "Many people asked the Vice President for advice in 2016. He never worked for a campaign, but he urged both Republicans and Democrats to reach out to working-class towns like Middletown, Ohio. We 100 percent reject the characterization that he was trying to help Hillary win."
The revelation represents nothing less than a political bombshell for the Republican Party as it weighs Vance and Rubio for upcoming elections. If the details prove accurate, it could significantly complicate the relationship between Vice President Vance and the boss he once tried to defeat.
