JD Vance has stirred up many emotions during his short time at the White House. From the outburst at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, to the visit to Greenland, the Vice President of the United States has plenty on his mind.
Meanwhile, his wife, Usha Vance, has stayed out of the spotlight–until now. In a new interview, the Second Lady shed some insight into her new life. And according to Usha, her husband is living in a “lonely world”.
JD Vance met his now-wife, Usha Vance, previously Chilukri, at Yale Law School. Born in 1986, Usha comes from a well-educated family of Indian immigrants and grew up in San Diego. When she grew up, her father, Krish, worked as an aerospace engineer and university lecturer. At the same time, her mother, Lakshmi, was a professor of molecular biology.
JD and Usha shared a reading group and social circle in college; at first, they were just friends. But things developed into something more, and according to Vance, Usha was more than just a girlfriend and a best friend. He has previously described her as his “spirit guide” at Yale.
“She instinctively understood the questions I didn’t even know to ask and she always encouraged me to seek opportunities that I didn’t know existed,” JD wrote in his 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy.
Later, in 2020, he said: “I’m one of those guys who really benefits from having sort of a powerful female voice over his left shoulder saying, ‘Don’t do that, do that.'”
Their classmate at Yale, Charles Tyler, spoke with the BBC, saying that “they were always this match of very dissimilar people.” In his memoir Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, Vance stated that he had “never felt out of place” in his entire life but “did at Yale.”
JD Vance & Usha Vance
Therefore, Usha became even more crucial for his development and pursuit of a degree. Usha graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University. She was also a Gates Scholar at Cambridge University, earning a Master of Philosophy in early modern history.
A year after graduating, JD and Usha Vance married. They had two ceremonies: one Hindu ceremony conducted by a Hindu priest to honor Usha’s Hindu heritage, and one traditional wedding ceremony.
Despite their different religious backgrounds, JD and Usha have been brought closer together. Speaking with Fox News, JD said that his wife’s Hindu faith has been essential to him, helping him to navigate challenges in his professional and personal life and reconcile with his Catholic beliefs. He was raised Christian “but never baptized,” Vance explained.
“I was first baptized in 2018. Usha was actually raised non-Christian. But I remember when I started to re-engage with my faith, Usha was very supportive,” he added.
In the same Fox interview, Usha explained she had been brought up in a “religious household.” She agreed that her faith had helped her husband navigate his life.
“My parents are Hindu, and that’s one of the things that made them such good parents and good people. And I have seen the power of that in my own life. And I knew that JD was searching for something. This just felt right for him. We just talk a lot,” she added, concluding that they agree on many values and principles.
“Usha definitely brings me back to earth”
JD Vance has clearly stated that Usha has been vital in shaping his personal and spiritual beliefs. The couple share three children: Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel. They have decided to keep their children out of their professional lives and let them grow up outside the spotlight.
Usha has currently paused her career to support her vice president husband. She was by his side throughout the 2024 presidential race, advising him in his debate preparations. When Trump won the Presidential Election, Usha appeared on stage next to him.
It’s safe to say that JD Vance appreciates that his wife has stood beside him. In 2020, when appearing on The Megyn Kelly Show, Vance noted that his wife is a “powerful female voice” guiding him.
“Usha definitely brings me back to earth. If I get a little too cocky or a little too proud, I remind myself that she’s way more accomplished than I.”
Usha Vance is now the Second Lady of the United States and is often seen in public next to her husband. However, a few weeks ago, JD Vance courted controversy online with a quip he made at Usha’s expense.
JD Vance blasted for comment about his wife on stage
While speaking at an event in Michigan, Vance praised his spouse for doing a great job, stating that he was proud to have her by his side. He then suggested that she has no other option but to laugh at everything he says when they are on camera.
“Here’s the thing. The cameras are all on; anything I say, no matter how crazy, she has to smile, laugh, and celebrate it,” JD said, while Usha was seen smiling and laughing. The clip was posted on X, and social media users quickly expressed anger toward JD.
“JD Vance’s comment about his wife was demeaning and controlling. It’s another example of his arrogance, showing disrespect even to his spouse on a public stage. His pattern of divisive remarks proves he’s unfit for leadership,” one user wrote, as per MSN.
“That sounds like a threat. She should consult a lawyer and ensure the long-term safety and security of herself and the children. I know how this goes over time in a marriage. The threats get real,” a second wrote.
A third social media user added: “Why is she standing like that when he’s saying that nonsense? Is she being abused? What man talks like that about their wife? Wow. Girl blink three times real fast and we’ll come save you.”
A fourth person stated: “I know it’s supposed to be a joke but.. poor taste. And he’s kind of shouting himself in the foot, now people will think her reactions as well as those of others around him are fake,” while another said Vance’s “attempt at humor is always tasteless” and that Usha looked “miserable.”
Usha Vance speaks out about life as Second Lady
While JD Vance has taken center stage, his wife has kept herself largely out of the spotlight. The Second Lady has not spoken about her new life, but now, she has broken her silence. In an interview with The Free Press writer Peter Savodnik, Usha Vance states that their new lives “are not normal,” and that it “feels almost absurd to say that they are.”
Moreover, the Second Lady stated that people “don’t seem to care” about what she is wearing.
“I’m laughing because it would be really hard for me to be blonde … that color would look totally absurd”, Usha said, adding that she has felt welcome in Trump’s political world.
“For what it’s worth, my reception into this world — and I’m not from a particularly wealthy background, not from a very fashion-oriented background personally or professionally — has been really positive,’ she said. ‘People don’t seem to care all that much what I look like.”
Usha Vance’s life—and her husband’s, too, for that matter—changed forever as JD Vance was sworn in as Vice President of the United States beside Donald Trump. Usha states she remains JD’s close confidant and advisor, though she doesn’t like to think she has a lot of influence over him.
Perhaps most interesting of all, she admitted that her husband lives in a pretty lonely world.
Social media makes fun of JD Vance after his life was branded “lonely” by his wife
“The day before JD was selected — I did not know he was going to be selected — I was working as a lawyer, and I had the wardrobe of a person with three children who likes to do things outdoors, who has a dog, who doesn’t like things to be too precious,” Usha told The Free Press writer Peter Savodnik.
“I don’t know that he’s asking me for advice so much as it can be a very lonely, lonely world not to share with someone,” she continued. “It’s a very strange life that we lead, where there are lots of people who have just imagined all sorts of narratives about us and what we think and what we do and why we do it and how much planning goes into it and all these sorts of things.”
It wasn’t long before Usha Vance’s comment about JD Vance being “lonely” flooded social media. The internet quickly picked up the comments, and on social media platform Reddit, many made fun of the Vice President.
“They weren’t wearing suits, so,” one user wrote, referring to JD Vance’s comment to Volodymyr Zelenskyy about not wearing a suit in the Oval Office, per Buzzfeed.
Another referred to the same occasion, writing, “Did he say thank you to his friends?”
A third user on Reddit didn’t spare the words, declaring, “Spoiler alert: being an unlikable a**hole and condoning the behavior of madmen results in no friends.”
“Oh no, poor JD Vance,” another user ironically wrote. “Making money off the same taxpayers he’s demonizing while pushing to take away the benefits they paid into and firing many Americans. His kids will be in his rich buddies’s private, expensive schools that they’ve been pushing for taxpayers to pay for. But JD Vance feels lonely? Wow, so sad.”
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