How the Media Created J.D. Vance. Plus, the Anointing of Donald Trump

At the Republican National Convention, Donald J. Trump named J.D. Vance as his pick for Vice President. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Vance went from liberal darling to MAGA leader, with a little help from a billionaire. Plus, meet the right-wing Christians who see the failed attempt on Trump’s life as evidence of his divine anointing by God.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone charts the media’s role in shaping J.D. Vance's rise. Vance rose to fame as a liberal media darling who frequently lambasted Donald Trump after the publication of his blockbuster memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” to Trump’s VP pick and a new leader of the MAGA movement. Ian Ward, a reporter at Politico, and Simon van Zuylen-Wood, a staff writer at New York Magazine, speak to how Vance’s vision of America extends far beyond Trumpism. 

[15:03] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Andrew Prokop, senior politics correspondent at Vox, about Vance’s roots in the so-called New Right, a scrappy but growing offshoot of conservatism that aims to seize and destroy societal institutions they believe are controlled by the left. Plus, John Herrman, tech columnist at New York Magazine, explains what Big Tech sees in MAGA.

[36:35] Brooke speaks with Matthew D. Taylor, author of the forthcoming book The Violent Take it by Force, about how the attempted assassination of Trump has amplified a subset of evangelicals who believe that prophecy foresaw the event. These right-wing Christians see Trump as an anointed candidate, saved by God. 

Further reading / listening:

• The Radicalization of J.D. Vance by Simon van Zuylen-Wood
• 55 Things to Know About JD Vance, Trump’s VP Pick by Ian Ward
• J.D. Vance’s radical plan to build a government of Trump loyalists by Andrew Prokop
• Why Silicon Valley Elites Are Turning MAGA by John Herrman
• How the Assassination Attempt Has Ignited the Prophecy World by Matthew D. Taylor
• The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy by Matthew D. Taylor

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