The white working-class myth that made JD Vance

[marmar]

The white working-class myth that made JD Vance
From "Hillbilly Elegy" to "Communion," Vance's narrative is about power, not solidarity

By Chauncey DeVega
Senior Writer
Published June 25, 2026 6:45AM (EDT)


(Salon) Vice President JD Vance wants to be Donald Trump’s successor. As part of that quest, he has written the obligatory memoir and has embarked on a media tour.

In his new book, “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith,” Vance reflects on the culture wars, a need for moral renewal in America and his conversion to a conservative form of Catholicism. Predictably, he does not critically engage with how he can serve a wicked and ungodly president whose personal behavior and politics violate almost every core tenet of his professed Christian values. As Christian Paz detailed at Vox, “In the course of explaining how he came to serve God, he also shows how easy, if not necessary in modern America, it is for him — and for them — to subordinate that faith to politics.”

....(snip)....

The years since the publication of “Hillbilly Elegy” demonstrated that Vance is, at his heart, an opportunist and a chameleon. Before entering politics, he publicly and privately condemned Trump, describing him as “America’s Hitler” and an “idiot.” Venture capitalist and conservative activist Peter Thiel served as his mentor, funding his career in finance and underwriting Vance’s own business. When Vance ran for the Senate in 2022, Thiel was his largest donor, contributing approximately $15 million to his campaign. Thiel’s intervention on behalf of Vance serves as a reminder that the vice president did not pull himself up alone by his bootstraps; he had a lot of help and luck along the way.

....(snip)....

In American politics — especially in the post-Civil Rights Movement era — the term “working class” (or “blue collar”) is presented as being race and gender neutral when it is usually a stand-in for white conservative and right-leaning men.

In reality, there are tens of millions of working-class Black and brown people. Approximately 46% of the U.S. working class are women. ..........................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2026/06/25/the-white-working-class-myth-that-made-jd-vance/

[FakeNoose]

1. Interesting theory

... however I doubt that many MAGA-types have ever read Vance's books. And that goes for the Blacks as well as the whites.

Ohio isn't all that different from my state of Pennsylvania in many ways. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't believe Vance could have been elected here, and yet he managed to win in Ohio. Was Peter Thiel's money the thing that made the difference? If so, it means Thiel was the winner, not Vance.