Welcome back to Good Life, a newsletter about navigating our modern culture and staying sane in the process. This weekend, we’ll discuss my time at the RNC.
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I went to the Midterm Republican National Convention this week, as well as an event I’ll write more about later, but today I wanted to focus on Vice President JD Vance’s closing-night speech. Online, people are comparing it to President Trump’s 2016 campaign. Some are calling it the breakout speech for 2028. And while there is a long road ahead between now and the next presidential election, being there in person and feeling the reception Vance received from the crowd, I can’t help but agree.
I was sitting in the crowd with the regular admission guests. That let me listen to everyday Americans’ conversations about the speakers and get unfiltered feedback from the GOP’s core base. You can’t get that from a press box or one of the booths up top.
The convention was packed from the moment I got there. It was hard to find a seat even though Vance and Trump weren’t supposed to take the stage for hours. Even still, as Vance’s time got closer, ushers were guiding attendees down the aisles, looking for any available seats left. By the time he took the stage, every spot was taken. The only empty seats were blocked off for security reasons by the Secret Service.
Polling shows that Vance has a lead over any other potential 2028 Republican primary candidate, and I wanted to see if that held up among the base in real life. The people who travel to attend a convention are the voters the party doesn’t have to worry about showing up to the polls. These voters will determine the party’s future with their choices. Knowing which way they are leaning is a critical barometer for the work I do. I pride myself on staying connected to the grassroots, but even I can get stuck in an issue bubble that blinds me.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that wasn’t the case with Vance.
As the woman sitting directly behind me put it: “There will never be another president like Trump, but Vance will be great.”
He came out to cheers of “JD! JD! JD! JD!” which is somewhat expected. But it wouldn’t be the only time the crowd chanted his name or screamed “JD 48!” throughout his 40-minute speech. Vance was the only speaker I witnessed who seemed to understand the plight of the regular American. He spoke about the economic and job-related exhaustion that they feel without belittling it or claiming that their feelings aren’t real. He talked about the attacks from the left on the nuclear family and how these have come close to home for him after his wife, Usha, had their fourth child six weeks ago.
When Trump campaigned in 2016, people didn’t choose him over the rest because they thought a billionaire might run the country better than elites. They chose him because he identified the problems that have kept Americans from realizing the American Dream. The way Trump spoke about our decimated domestic manufacturing and how illegal immigration was causing problems in our communities made Americans believe that he would fight for their future. He made them believe in the political process again, that if they show up and vote, help would be on the way.
Vance offered the same connection to the problem and promise for a solution that Trump offered a decade ago. The delivery is different, of course. After witnessing the two speak back-to-back, I understand what that woman meant when she said there will never be another Trump. He has a way about him that, even if you are frustrated with his policy decisions, you can’t help but be disarmed by his charisma. But I also noticed that with Vance there was no need to disarm the crowd, which I wasn’t expecting.
He spoke directly to young men who came out in droves to deliver the GOP the 2024 victories but feel disillusioned or left out of the conversation in 2026. Vance reminded the crowd that the fight that sent Trump into the White House twice is not over. The battle will outlive his presidency, and that “will to fight,” as he put it, is the only way to save this country for our children.
