Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, was armed with polling data and a risky proposition at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in December.
Mostly unknown Bernie Moreno He was advancing in the Republican primary for Ohio’s other Senate seat, and Vance believed Trump had his support. raised him up in a crowded field two years ago – may be king again.
Three sources with knowledge of the meeting said that Trump believed it and called Moreno on the spot to support him. Months later, polls showed Moreno struggling to keep the race awayTrump, again at Vance’s insistence, flew for one last minute rally.
The gamble paid off for Trump last week Moreno won by a wide margin This strengthened Trump’s influence in the GOP primaries. And it could soon pay off for Vance, 39 among those mentioned as potential running mates For Trump.
“JD has an incredible future,” said Alex Bruesewitz, a Trump adviser. “What does it look like? I’m not entirely sure at this point. But when you look at conservatives who are younger and have a pulse of the MAGA movement, there aren’t many of them, and JD is certainly one of them.”
Nearly all of the dozens of Republicans close to Trump and Vance’s political orbit who spoke to NBC News refrained from speculating on his chances for the vice presidency, citing the unpredictability of the process. But most acknowledged his political stock has risen, describing Vance as someone who brings to the table two qualities that Trump prizes: unwavering loyalty and a winning reputation. Moreno’s primary victory cemented Vance’s status as a trusted adviser.
“Trump likes to think of people as liaisons in certain states,” said Ric Grenell, Moreno’s campaign co-chairman and a former Trump administration official close to Trump. “Kari Lake is the person in Arizona and JD is her contact in Ohio. “He’s the first person he calls for advice about Ohio.”
At a March 16 rally for Moreno, Trump praised Vance, calling him “my friend,” an “absolute star,” a “great senator” and a “true fighter.”
In response to a request for comment on this article, Trump’s advisor said, “Sen. Vance is a strong advocate for the America First movement, and he continues to show how to effectively defeat Democrats and the media from perpetuating lies and lies about conservatives.
Advantages aside, Trump allies and other Republicans worried that Moreno was in danger of losing to state Sen. Matt Dolan in the final days of the primary. Backed by the Trump-skeptic old guard of the Ohio GOP.
“If Moreno loses,” An unknown adviser to Trump told Politico about this In a quote that became bulletin board fodder for the Moreno and Vance teams, “this is going to be sour [Trump] in JD.”
But Moreno won easily, exceeded 50% of the votes and carries each of Ohio’s 88 counties. He will face Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in November.
The chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, described the result as a victory for Vance.
“JD is a rising star in the Republican Party,” Daines said. “He demonstrated political savvy and strength in his home state by helping his preferred candidate prevail in a difficult primary.”
Vance credited Trump.
“President Trump has the strongest support in political history,” Vance said in a statement that did not address the vice presidential speculation. “He was the driving force behind Bernie’s victory, and conservatives in Ohio are grateful to him for making sure we ran someone who actually supported the America First agenda.”
“Not only will I continue to do everything I can to help elect President Trump,” Vance added, “but I will do everything I can to ensure he has more allies in the House and Senate.”
In several ways, Moreno’s path as a Senate candidate mirrors that of Vance two years ago. Both were record breaking political newcomers Beat Trump 2016 and who must prove a certain viability before gaining its approval.
He became known as Vance a prominent Trump critic While he was promoting his best-selling memoir Hillbilly Elegy, which explores working-class poverty and his family’s socioeconomic struggles in Ohio and Kentucky. But over the years evolved On how he talks about Trump, praises him for his trade policies and covers the culture wars that energize the modern GOP. That too He developed a friendship with Donald Trump Jr.When he started to show signs of strength, Vance helped his father.
Moreno briefly entered the 2022 Senate primary, but dropped out after meeting with Trump and agreeing that his presence in the crowded race would make it easier for Dolan, who is also running that year, to win. Moreno followed Trump in endorsing Vance, becoming a key campaign adviser and serving as Vance’s Democratic challenger, then-Rep. Tim Ryan prepares for the debate. (Moreno also has personal ties to the Trump world through her daughter, Emily, and her husband, Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, both former Trump aides.)
Vance met and greeted Moreno this year. fighting for him on social media and meeting high-profile donors. An adviser to the group, he helped Moreno contribute nearly $1 million to supporters of the Buckeye Values PAC. It was the effort that also helped pay for Trump’s rally for Moreno first reported by Axios.
“I don’t want to talk about the VP race because I have no idea what’s going to happen,” Grenell said. “But the reality is that what people love about non-politicians is that they don’t calculate risk and don’t use it as a basis for their decisions. They don’t shy away from risk.”
Moreno told this week how Vance once scored a meeting with a “very prominent Republican donor,” only to run into childcare issues at the last minute. So Vance brought one of his younger children to the rink.
“It was just JD, [his kid] and a bag of Cheerios at the billionaire’s house,” Moreno said.
“He was invaluable,” Moreno said. “He never turned down anything we asked of him – and I thought we asked more than we’ve asked of any other person, to be honest.”
Asked if Vance would make a good vice president, Moreno didn’t hesitate.
“He would be a great vice president,” she said.
Moreno and others emphasized that Vance is enjoying his role in the Senate. There, he cemented his reputation as a culture warrior, developing bilateral ties to advance a range of populist proposals.
Vance worked with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass legislation It would restore the salaries of executives at failed banks. He teamed up with Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis a bill to ensure that more products invented with the help of federal funds are made in the United States, and last week he and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D.R.I., submitted a bill closing tax loopholes for large corporate deals.
He is also known for his vision and sensitivity during local disasters A poison train has derailed in East Palestine one month before the deadline Recent tornadoes in western Ohio. In Ottawa last week, Putnam County GOP Chairman Tony Schroeder jokingly pointed to the vice president’s conversation after Vance was delayed for the Moreno event as he surveyed nearby storm damage.
“The good news is that he’s doing a phenomenal job for us in the United States Senate,” Schroeder told the crowd. “The bad news is that he’s on President Trump’s short list to be vice president. Therefore, let’s hope that this will not happen.”
In a later interview, Schroeder said the reception Vance received at the event was a testament to how quickly he had grown as a politician in such a short time.
“Everybody wanted to come and say hello, touch him, see him, take photos — the whole nine yards,” Schroeder said.
“I don’t think it’s lost on President Trump or anyone else associated with him that he would be a very dynamic choice for the vice presidency,” Schroeder added. “I can take credit for being the first person to say that we should think about him as president of the United States in a few years.”