Ohio Senator and GOP candidate for Vice President J.D. Vance defended former President Donald Trump’s remarks labeling Democratic leaders “the enemy from within,” arguing that domestic challenges pose a greater threat to the United States than foreign adversaries, NBC News reported.
In an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press" on Saturday, Vance buoyed former President Donald Trump's assertion that democratic leaders are “the enemy from within.”
Vance emphasized that internal inflation, military recruitment struggles, and the ongoing migrant crisis are more pressing threats to the U.S. than foreign adversaries.
“These problems are caused by broken leadership,” Vance said, citing the challenges facing the nation. He specifically pointed to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., attributing America’s economic struggles to her time in leadership.
“Under Nancy Pelosi’s long life in public leadership, the United States has gone from the preeminent industrial power of the world to second, next to China,” Vance stated. “That fundamentally belongs on Nancy Pelosi’s shoulders, and if we’re going to have a more prosperous country, we’ve got to recognize our own leadership is why we lost our industrial base to China.”
Vance explained, “What [Trump] said is that the biggest threat we have in our country, it’s not a foreign adversary, because we can handle these guys. We can handle foreign conflicts.”
Earlier this month, Trump told Fox News, “We have the outside enemy, and then we have the enemy from within, and the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia, and all these countries.”
Trump specifically named Pelosi and Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., as examples of such internal threats.
During a Fox News town hall, Trump expanded on his views, suggesting that foreign adversaries could be managed with capable leadership.
“We have China. We have Russia. We have all these countries. If you have a smart president, they can all be handled. The more difficult are, you know, the Pelosis. These people, they’re so sick, and they’re so evil,” he remarked.
The discussion has fueled criticism from democratic leaders, who argue that such rhetoric undermines national unity and shifts focus away from genuine external threats. Vance and his allies contend that recognizing and addressing these internal challenges is vital to restoring America's global standing.