MUSIC (00:00):
… world help us for a change.
(00:00)
And let’s rebuild America first.
(00:00)
Our highways and bridges are falling apart.
(00:00)
Who’s blessed and who has been cursed?
(00:00)
There’s things to be done all over the world.
(00:03)
But let’s rebuild America first.
J. D. Vance (00:21):
Wow. Hello. It is great to be in the great state of Michigan. In 69 days, my friends, we’re going to take this country back. We’re going to elect Donald J. Trump President of the United States, and it is going to start right here with the great people of Michigan.
(00:48)
Now, last week, the biggest heist in American history happened right under Kamala Harris’s nose. Somebody stole 818,000 jobs that she and Tim Walz had been bragging about. Did you all see that? Where’d they go? Now, you may not have heard this because our friends in the back, the media, doesn’t like to talk about it, but what really happened is this. The Harris Administration had to admit that more than a quarter of all the jobs that had supposedly been created last year were actually fake. They never existed. It was the biggest revision to the job numbers since the financial crisis back in 2008-2009. In other words, what it means is they are cooking the books to hide how bad the economy really is under Kamala Harris. I promise you this: on November 5th, there is one job that is definitely going to vanish, and that is when we tell Kamala Harris, “You are fired,” and send her back to San Francisco.
Audience (01:51):
Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!
J. D. Vance (01:57):
Now-
Audience (01:57):
Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!
J. D. Vance (02:05):
Now, you all are fired up and it’s hot out here. Kamala Harris, she needs a rock star to get a crowd like this. We just come out here because we’re patriots and we want to save this country.
Audience (02:13):
Yeah.
J. D. Vance (02:18):
Now, Kamala, I don’t know if you noticed, if you paid attention to the news lately. Kamala has decided that the American people don’t like her policies, and she’s exactly right about that. Just take one, immigration. Kamala Harris, remember, she suspended deportations on day one. She stopped Donald Trump’s Remain in Mexico policy. That was on day one, and that’s why we have a wide-open southern border. But I read a story this morning that her advisors are considering just copying all of Donald Trump’s policies. They’re more popular.
(02:52)
In fact, I’ve heard that for her debate in just a couple of weeks, she’s going to put on a Navy suit, a long red tie, and adopt the slogan “Make America Great Again.” But we’re not going to let the American people forget that Kamala Harris is the candidate of American decline. She cast the tie-breaking vote for the Inflation Explosion Act. She cast the tie-breaking vote to send interest rates and mortgages through the roof. She opened that border on day one, and as much as fake Kamala wants to pretend that she now agrees with Donald Trump, we’ve got to remind her, she’s the Vice President right now. Stop talking about what you’re going to do. Start talking about what you are going to do right now because you’re the Vice President.
(03:41)
And what she has done has been a disaster. Now, I will confess that in some ways, I have a soft heart, ladies and gentlemen. In some ways, I feel bad for Kamala Harris.
Audience (03:52):
No.
J. D. Vance (03:55):
They don’t. You don’t. But I’m not sure that this is a woman who knows what she actually believes. If you think about it, she’s just a cog in the wheel of a very corrupt system. Now, let’s go back in time a few years and just remember the formula of Kamala Harris and her handlers and what it wrecked. Now, remember, step one was to ship all of our good manufacturing jobs to Mexico, to China, to far-flung corners all over the world. Remember, Kamala Harris supported the reauthorization of NAFTA, which has been terrible for the state of Michigan, the state of Ohio, and the state of Pennsylvania. Proud towns became ghost towns. Dignified American workers became dependent on the government and families, including a lot of families like mine, fell apart under financial stress. Now, that was step one. Did we ask for any of that?
Audience (04:50):
No.
J. D. Vance (04:50):
Now, here’s step two. Step two is open our border to millions of illegal immigrants, and into that void of joblessness, pour drugs and a lot of cheap labor. Our leadership, including Kamala Harris, they said it was compassionate, but it was a lie. What they really wanted, my friends, was millions of voters for Democrat policies, and they wanted millions of cheap laborers. American wages went down and our leaders learned they could ignore their own citizens and their quest for power. Now, that was step two, and I ask, did we ask for that?
Audience (05:28):
No.
J. D. Vance (05:28):
Now, the next step was a lot of stupid foreign policy. Our leaders couldn’t deliver prosperity, but they could deliver war and conflict. So we invaded countries all over the world and then we invited other countries to invade us through illegal immigration. Our people got poorer, our leaders got richer, and they got more powerful. Now, that was step three, and I ask, did we ask for that?
Audience (05:53):
No.
J. D. Vance (05:53):
Now, I have lived, and I know a lot of us in this crowd have lived, the consequences of these failures, and I saw it very personally, my friends. My parents divorced. My family began to struggle. My mom, God love her, she found solace in the prescription pain pills that a lot of kids and a lot of adults were getting hooked on, and then eventually she moved on to some harder stuff. Now, I will tell you that I thought I would lose my mom when I was a kid, and I prayed every single day that she would somehow find her way to a second chance. And I’m very proud, my friends, to tell you, not only did my mom find a second chance, but she’s here with us today, campaigning with me in the state of Michigan.
Audience (06:47):
J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D.!
J. D. Vance (06:48):
Now she is, I will say, the best grandmother that my kids could ask for. They are seven, four, and two. Spoils them a little bit too much. Mom, no more Pokemon cards. In front of a thousand people, no more Pokemon cards. The kids have got enough. But I know that a lot of Americans prayed for that second chance, and thank God, we got it. But a lot of Americans prayed for other things. They prayed for good jobs. They prayed for their towns to have prosperity. They prayed for their parents to overcome the scourge of addiction. And in 2016, a lot of those prayers were answered, my friends, weren’t they?
Audience (07:22):
Yeah.
J. D. Vance (07:22):
After a generation of Americans being ignored by their leaders, Americans spoke with a unified voice, and you know what they said? They said, “No more bullshit,” and they sent Donald J. Trump to the White House.
Audience (07:33):
Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump!
J. D. Vance (07:43):
Now, the same people who screwed this country up for 30 years said President Donald Trump would fail. Remember that? And I remember, I was myself… I didn’t fully believe in the promises of Donald Trump. He persuaded me because he did such a good job. What happened next? Let’s all remember. Gas was $2 a gallon. Housing was affordable for young and old alike. Wages were rising. And this word inflation that’s all people talk about now, it wasn’t even an issue. We had broad prosperity for every American, rich and poor. Donald Trump stopped the stupid wars and stood up to the bad guys all over the world. He recognized what our failed leadership didn’t: that weakness invites American boys and girls to wars that they shouldn’t have to fight. American strength promotes peace, and we had a hell of a lot of peace when Donald J. Trump was the President of the United States.
Audience (08:42):
Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump!
J. D. Vance (08:51):
I got to get whatever we fed these guys behind me. They’re having a good time. My friends, our border was secure. Overdose deaths were coming down where they had gone up for 15 years and a lot of people who struggled in my hometown had good jobs and good prosperity, and it happened all across the state of Michigan and Ohio. My mom, she got clean and she stayed clean. That was my personal victory that happened. And remember, for every lie they told about Donald J. Trump, he just kept on plugging away at doing the American people’s business. He did it so well we had take-home pay rising faster than it had in 30 years. Remember this. Our corrupt leadership said, “If you put tariffs on China, prices will go up.” Instead. Donald Trump did exactly that, manufacturing came back and prices went down for American citizens. They went up for the Chinese, but they went down for our people.
Audience (09:54):
USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
J. D. Vance (09:56):
Because when you make your own stuff with the hands of American workers, the whole country prospers. We know that in Michigan better than anywhere. Now, our corrupt leadership said, “If you enforce the border, people south of the border are going to suffer.” But Donald Trump recognized that his first responsibility as President was to the American citizen and not to anybody else. So he shut down that border. He shut off the drug trade, he drove the cartels out of business, and he had overdose deaths falling in this country. What an amazing thing it was.
(10:31)
Remember, our corrupt leadership said that you can’t defeat ISIS. Remember that? Just a few years ago, they said, “We’re going to have to re-invade Iraq to defeat ISIS.” Donald Trump defeated ISIS in a matter of weeks, and then he brought America’s sons and daughters home. What an amazing, amazing track record of leadership.
(10:50)
But let’s be honest. The country wasn’t broken in four years, and four years was not enough time to root out all of the corruption. So while Americans were getting richer, a lot of bureaucrats and globalists were getting poor. That was the story of Trump’s term. So Kamala Harris, she and her corrupt handlers, they came up with a plan. Now, they couldn’t beat Donald Trump in an honest debate, so they decided to engage in censorship. They were going to censor Donald Trump and they were going to censor his supporters.
(11:18)
Now remember, back in 2020, they lied about Biden’s corruption and covered up the fact that his family got rich by selling access to the United States government, and Kamala Harris was there for all of it. They lied about the Hunter Biden laptop and encouraged big tech to silence the story. And they did. They lied about Covid coming from a Chinese lab, and they censored anybody who disagreed. Kamala Harris even went on national TV and said Joe Biden was as sharp as a tack, even he was clearly mentally incompetent to do the job. And so it’s obvious what’s been going on, right? Kamala Harris has been calling the shots. And by lying about his mental fitness for the job, she got what she always wanted, which was more power.
(12:02)
And what was the result? On her watch, gas prices are up 50%. Housing costs have doubled. You talk to a young person today; young people cannot afford to buy a home in their own country. We’re turning a generation of 20- and 30-year-olds into permanent debtors. Donald Trump and I believe young people ought to own a stake in their own country, be able to build a life and start a family. That’s what we’re fighting for.
Audience (12:26):
Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump!
J. D. Vance (12:30):
Grocery prices under Kamala Harris are up 21%, and I think that undercounts it. A record number of Americans are working multiple jobs, the housing market is as unaffordable as it has ever been, and the average new car costs nearly $50,000. Americans, this is heartbreaking. We now owe more than $1 trillion in credit-card debt, a record high at a time when interest rates are going up and up.
(12:59)
That’s not all she did, my friends. She isn’t just causing high prices. She’s undoing the incredible work that Donald Trump did to rebuild American manufacturing. Now we stand very close, of course, to the new Goshen factory, right? That’s right. And remember the tie-breaking vote that she cast to send inflation through the roof? Remember that vote? That vote also made Chinese companies like Goshen eligible for millions of your taxpayer dollars.
(13:31)
Now, the great Mike Rogers, who’s running for Senate, has been a champion on this issue. Thank you, Mike, for doing what you do. There we go. Stand up. But it’s not just the really good ones like Mike Rogers. Even some of the folks in Obama’s administration said that the Goshen factory plant is a threat to America’s national security. Even Obama’s leadership. But Kamala Harris not only wants to allow the Chinese Communist Party to build factories on American soil; she wants to pay them to do it with our tax money.
(14:11)
Now, China has also, of course, stolen from Michigan car companies and unfairly subsidized its auto industry for years. That is the wreckage of what the Chinese have been doing. And now Democrats in this state, and including Kamala Harris, want to give them hundreds of millions of dollars to those same companies that have been undercutting Michigan auto workers. What a disaster, isn’t it?
Audience (14:33):
Yeah.
J. D. Vance (14:35):
Now, I know, like I said, we’ve got some great leadership like Mike Rogers who are helping us in this fight. We’ve also got Chairman Pete Hoekstra, who will help turn Michigan red. Where’s Pete at? Thank you, Pete. We’ve got the great Tudor Dixon. Where is Tudor at? I saw Tudor earlier. There’s Tudor Dixon.
(14:58)
Now, they all know firsthand the Democrats are helping China destroy and replace our auto industry from the inside out, and we’re going to stop it. The Democrats are helping China, and it’s not just in Goshen, okay? They’re doing a lot more beyond that. In fact, just a few weeks ago you probably saw this: Stellantis announced that it would lay off nearly 2,500 proud Michigan auto workers making the iconic Ram 1500 Classic.
(15:25)
Now, that is the record of Kamala Harris shipping American jobs to China and paying them to do it with your tax dollars. And what did she talk about at her convention speech? I just saw that. Did you see Kamala’s convention speech?
Audience (15:38):
No.
J. D. Vance (15:38):
Well, that was smart of you for not seeing it, but I’m in this business. I have to. Now, Kamala Harris said, “When we fight, we win.” This is one of her favorite tag lines.
Audience (15:47):
Bullshit!
J. D. Vance (15:47):
And I don’t know if you saw it, but then Tim Walz stood up and shouted, “And even when we don’t fight.” That’s what Tim Walz said. Now, he lies about everything, of course. He calls me weird, but then he lies about how his kids were conceived. Who does that? That’s just the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen. He said he served in combat, but the closest Tim Walz ever came to combat is when he let rioters burn Minneapolis to the ground and did absolutely nothing to stop it.
(16:21)
And I know we have got a lot of veterans out there. I served in the United States Marine Corps, and I did go to Iraq when my country asked me, and I’m proud of it. And I know a lot of veterans who take offense-
Audience (16:44):
J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D.!
J. D. Vance (16:44):
But there are a lot of veterans from across our military who don’t like it when other people lie about their service for military gain, and that’s exactly what Tim Walz said. It is a slap in the face to all veterans, and it’s not just from Tim Walz. Kamala Harris not only chooses to stand by this man, because in spite of his dishonesty, she actually chose him to become her Vice President to begin with.
Audience (17:07):
Boo! [inaudible 00:17:10] Kamala!
J. D. Vance (17:10):
Now, while we’re on the subject of their convention, she said something else at her convention. And I don’t know if you paid attention here. She said, “There are going to be extremely serious consequences for voting for Donald Trump.” Now Kamala, I’ve got two responses to that. First of all, that is not a very presidential thing to say. Is she the Vice President or the Vice Principal, warning about very serious consequences, whining at people for telling a joke instead of trying to persuade them that she deserves to be their president? I’m sick of people like that.
(17:43)
But second, it’s the substance, because the extremely serious consequences, Kamala, have come from your leadership as Vice President of the United States. Americans can’t afford groceries because of your leadership, Kamala. Young people can’t afford homes because of the policies that you have enacted as Vice President. Now, the only serious consequence in November that I’m worried about is giving Kamala Harris a disastrous promotion. Let’s say to Kamala Harris, “You are fired. We are not sending you to the Oval Office.”
(18:19)
Now, my favorite line from Kamala is she says if you elect her president, she is going to fix it all on day one. Well, Kamala, I hate to break it to you, but day one was 1,300 days ago. You’ve been Vice President for three and a half years. What the hell have you been doing during all that time? The message from this crowd and this state of Michigan is you had your chance, your failed, and we’re not giving you a promotion.
Audience (18:48):
Yeah.
J. D. Vance (18:48):
And Donald J. Trump is coming back to clean up your mess, Kamala Harris, and it’s going to start right here in the state of Michigan.
Audience (18:54):
Yeah! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!
J. D. Vance (19:09):
Now, Kamala Harris has run her entire campaign on the idea that she’s joyful. But ask yourself, are you better off than you were four years ago?
Audience (19:20):
No.
J. D. Vance (19:20):
The only person in America who could possibly answer yes to that question is probably Kamala Harris herself. She went from getting no votes for president and having to drop out to getting no votes for president and becoming the Democrat nominee, all without lifting a finger. No wonder Kamala is joyful. Now, never mind the fact that Americans can’t afford groceries. Kamala got her promotion. Never mind that our fellow citizens can’t afford their rent, because Kamala, she’s having fun. And never mind that Kamala Harris is on the cusp of running us into World War III. Kamala will laugh all the way to the bank while her donors get rich, and we know it’s not going to be her family sacrificing to pick up the mess.
(19:59)
But I got to tell you, as much as I am frustrated with Kamala Harris, I am so hopeful about the future of our country. We have the most beautiful country in the entire world, don’t we?
Audience (20:12):
Yeah.
J. D. Vance (20:12):
I’ve been flying around the country, I’ve been driving around the country, and you get a new perspective running to be the next vice president that I’m so grateful for. We’ve got natural resources all across this country that are the envy of the world, my friends. We just need better leadership. It is that simple. Better leadership. That’s all we need to fix this country. So here’s what we’re going to do, and we’ll offer a little contrast. Kamala Harris wants to open the border on day one. Donald Trump is going to close the southern border, and his message to every illegal immigrant is pack your bags because you’re going home.
Audience (20:51):
Yeah!
J. D. Vance (20:51):
Kamala Harris wants to bankrupt Medicare by giving it to illegal aliens. Donald Trump is going to fight to safeguard Medicare and all of our great programs so that it only goes to the American citizens who paid into it, not to illegal aliens who are going to bankrupt it. Now, Kamala Harris wants to shut down American energy and drive manufacturing out of this country. Donald Trump has a different idea. He is going to drill, baby, drill. We’re going to unleash American workers and bring back those great factories. Kamala Harris wants to reward companies that ship American jobs overseas, and she wants to raise taxes on American workers. Donald Trump is going to cut taxes for American workers, cut taxes for the businesses that hire them, and raise the tariffs on the companies that are shipping jobs overseas. That’s our promise, and that’s exactly what Donald Trump’s going to do.
Audience (21:46):
USA! USA! USA!
J. D. Vance (21:51):
And so while Donald Trump is the people’s President and Kamala Harris is running on a fake joy, Donald Trump is going to offer something very, very different. He’s going to offer a very real hope for the future of this country. Hope that we can reignite our economy and bring back prosperity. Hope that we can raise our kids in secure neighborhoods with safe borders. Hope that we can renew the patriotism that binds us together as one nation under God.
(22:24)
My friends, the American Dream right now, it probably seems a little out of reach to a lot of us, but in 69 days, we’re going to save every single American Dream. We’re going to save this country for the citizens of this land, and we are going to lead, together with President Donald J. Trump, a great American comeback. So I want us to send a message. I want us to send a message. They can hear it all the way in San Francisco. They can hear it in Tim Walz’s Minneapolis. They can hear it all across this country that Michigan is going red, Michigan is leading the Great American comeback, and Michigan is going to elect Donald J. Trump the next President of the United States. God bless you all, thank you all, and thank you for having me in this beautiful country. God bless you all.
Audience (23:09):
J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D., J.D.!
MUSIC (23:09):
Why don’t we liberate these United States?
(23:42)
We’re the ones need it the worst.
(23:42)
Let the rest of the world help us for a change.
(23:53)
And let’s rebuild America first.
(23:59)
Our highways and bridges are falling apart.
(23:59)
Who’s blessed and who has been cursed?
(24:06)
There’s things to be done all over the world-