U.S. Vice President JD Vance hints at disagreement with Trump over Iran war while defending their broader military approach

U.S. Vice President JD Vance suggested he has disagreed with President Donald Trump over the Iran war, while arguing that conservatives who oppose the conflict should not abandon Trump over that single issue.

Speaking about commentator Tucker Carlson’s opposition to the war, Vance said: “Even if you disagree with him on that one issue, you can have that disagreement. And I think I have had that disagreement.” He added that Carlson is “very, very angry” about the war and said he understands his position, while urging him not to “throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

Vance also said he and Trump are “very much aligned” on how they think about military action. He argued that military operations must accomplish a specific objective tied to a strategic U.S. goal and said the country should not go to war simply because leaders are angry or frustrated.

Discussing the cost of the conflict, Vance said the U.S. has lost about 20 service members in the Iran war and argued that Washington must be gaining something “very, very beneficial” if troops are being asked to risk their lives.

Vance also criticized Carlson’s description of Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed as an “America First” candidate because of El-Sayed’s opposition to the Iran war. He argued that agreeing with Carlson on the conflict does not make El-Sayed America First, pointing to El-Sayed’s criticism of the war on international-law grounds.

On domestic politics, Vance described Trump voters as pragmatic rather than conventionally ideological conservatives. He said many were drawn to Trump because they believed the United States had been “losing for too long” and wanted the country to start winning again.

Vance said Ohio should be viewed as a pro-Trump state rather than a fundamentally Republican one, despite Trump and Vance winning it by 11 points in 2024. Asked about a possible presidential run, he also rejected the idea that serving as vice president entitled him to the Republican nomination.

He said the problems facing the U.S. were not created in two years or solely by the Biden administration, blaming what he described as a bipartisan 40-year consensus that moved American jobs overseas and underinvested in U.S. workers.

Vance also said substantial government power flows from the U.S. president and contrasted presidential authority in the United States with what he described as slower, highly bureaucratic decision-making in China and Russia.

On fentanyl, Vance said Mexican cartels had disguised the drug to resemble children’s candy during the Biden administration, presenting the issue as an example of what the Trump administration sought to address at the border.