Vice President JD Vance encountered an awkward moment during a speech at an Iowa manufacturing plant on Tuesday, May 5, halting mid-sentence and appealing to a colleague for assistance after misplacing his spot in his prepared remarks.
“What is, uh, this… what is, uh… Zach, you’re going to have to help me out with the name here. I lost my page here. OK. Alright. OK, there we go,” the vice president fumbled before the assembled audience. “I’m on the wrong page here.”
The purpose of Vance’s Iowa visit was to rally support for Republican Rep. Zach Nunn, whose Des Moines-area congressional district faces a competitive race in the upcoming November midterm contests, reports the Irish Star.
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This marks Vance’s inaugural trip to the state since assuming office, coming ahead of the Republican presidential caucuses scheduled in less than two years, according to The Associated Press.
The former Ohio U.S. senator, who ascended to vice president mid-term, left Washington earlier that day with one of his young children in tow.
Vance was able to get his footing back, after a little help from his friend -Credit:Getty Images
Before heading to Iowa, he made a stop in Cincinnati to participate in Ohio’s primary voting, informing journalists he was backing Vivek Ramaswamy for governor.
When questioned about U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, who’s competing in a special election to complete Vance’s Senate term, Vance expressed confidence, saying he believes Husted’s “going to do a great job” and has been “good for Ohio.”
His 6-year-old son filled out a children’s ballot during the visit, which the vice president presented to poll workers when casting his own vote.
J.D. Vance was in Iowa this past week
“He voted for the Easter bunny over the tooth fairy,” he remarked about his son.
Prior to his Iowa stop, Vance made an appearance in Oklahoma City for a fundraising event in his capacity as finance chair of the Republican National Committee. This Iowa trip provides Vance with a chance to gauge his standing among Iowa voters, whose first-in-the-nation caucuses give them significant influence in selecting the next presidential nominee.
Supporting a local congressman in his capacity as sitting vice president offers him an early opportunity to connect with Iowa Republicans, experienced assessors of those vying for the nation’s top office ahead of the campaign season kicking into full gear.
Vance’s visit follows closely after Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, another potential 2028 contender, addressed a gathering of prominent evangelical Christians involved in Iowa’s GOP race.
Jimmy Centers, a Des Moines-based Republican political consultant, noted that the 2028 race is “light-years away” but acknowledged that Republicans attending Vance’s Tuesday event will be assessing his potential as a White House candidate.
He became a little flustered during a speech
“I certainly think, as of right now, Vice President Vance would probably be a straw-poll winner of Iowa Republicans for 2028. But I don’t think anyone is saying, ‘We won’t consider anybody else,'” Centers said. Vance, who hasn’t indicated whether he’ll seek the presidency in 2028, is set to join Nunn at a manufacturing plant in Des Moines.
His office declined to discuss how the trip might affect Vance’s political ambitions.
The vice president’s appearance follows President Donald Trump’s January visit to promote the administration’s tax cuts, one of several stops they’re making this year focused on economic matters ahead of midterm elections that will decide Congressional control.
However, Vance’s arrival comes at a time when his own political future, and the economic message he’s anticipated to convey, have been muddied by the conflict in Iran. The vice president, who has historically been wary of overseas military involvement, has appeared to be an uneasy advocate for the 9-week-old conflict, which Trump has found difficult to resolve.
But then he found his place
Residents of Iowa, like Americans nationwide, are dealing with elevated fuel prices stemming from the hostilities.
Meanwhile, the state’s agricultural sector is also bearing the burden of inflated fertilizer expenses linked to the war and has suffered losses from tariffs imposed by Trump.
While Iowa’s agricultural community has remained firmly behind the president, they’ve been seeking guarantees from the White House that current challenges will be temporary.
Vance’s Iowa trip was initially planned for the previous week, but the schedule changed when the House advanced comprehensive farm legislation requiring Nunn’s vote.
The vice president had also been set to attend an Iowa State University gathering with Turning Point USA last week, but the group indicated it couldn’t arrange an alternative date with the university before autumn.