Vance Promotes Trump’s Economic Agenda at Hometown Ohio Steel Mill/ TezzBuzz/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Vice President JD Vance returned to his hometown of Middletown, Ohio, to campaign at the steel plant where his grandfather worked for nearly 40 years. Vance promoted President Donald Trump’s trade, immigration and manufacturing policies while acknowledging continued cost-of-living pressures. The visit supported Republican candidates facing competitive races for Ohio’s Senate seat and governorship.
Quick Look
- Vance spoke at Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown Works, formerly Armco Steel.
- His grandfather, James Vance, worked there as a welder for nearly four decades.
- Vance argued that Trump is attempting to reverse “40 years of American decline.”
- He promoted tariffs, immigration restrictions and domestic manufacturing.
- The Congressional Budget Office says tariffs have contributed to higher consumer prices.
- Vance criticized Democrats as increasingly disconnected from working-class voters.
- Republican Senate candidate Jon Husted and gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy also spoke.
- Vance is expected to increase his campaign travel before November’s midterms.
Deep Look
Vance returns to a plant central to his family’s story
MIDDLETOWN, Ohio — Vice President JD Vance returned to his hometown Friday to campaign for Republican candidates at the steel plant where his grandfather worked, using the setting to contrast today’s Democratic Party with the party his grandfather once supported.
Vance has emphasized his Rust Belt background while campaigning for Republican candidates ahead of November’s midterm elections. His appearances have focused heavily on the Trump administration’s economic policies and its drive to expand American manufacturing.
The vice president spoke at Cleveland-Cliffs Middletown Works, which was known as Armco Steel when his grandfather, James Vance, worked there for nearly 40 years.
“Papaw was a welder in this place for 40 years, and today his grandson stands here as the vice president of these United States. It’s an amazing thing,” Vance said.
The appearance came as Vance prepares to increase his schedule of campaign events and fundraisers, according to a person familiar with the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss them publicly.
Vance acknowledges economic pressures facing Americans
Vance has been more direct than President Donald Trump in acknowledging voters’ concerns about the cost of living. In Middletown, he sought to reassure Americans that the administration was working to bring prices under control, although he offered few specific details.
The vice president said, “We’ve got a lot of work to do” and “I’m not saying it’s going to be easy or it’s all going to happen overnight.”
Vance argued that Trump is working to reverse “40 years of American decline.” He pointed to the administration’s immigration and trade policies, including tariffs, as measures intended to protect industrial jobs such as those at the Middletown steel plant.
The Congressional Budget Office, however, has found that Trump’s tariffs have contributed to higher costs by increasing prices for imported products and some domestically produced goods.
Democrats portrayed as disconnected from workers
With competitive Ohio elections approaching, Vance argued that the Democratic Party no longer resembles the union-oriented organization his grandfather supported. He characterized today’s Democrats as the “party of graduate students.”
Vance said his grandfather also believed “way too many politicians were just plain old corrupt.”
“He hated the people who forgot about this town when they should have been fighting for this town,” Vance said.
The vice president spread blame across both major parties, arguing that decades of support for free trade and open immigration contributed to factory jobs moving overseas. He said the resulting economic decline was followed by opioid addiction and the fentanyl trade.
Middletown and Armco shaped Vance’s public identity
In his bestselling memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” Vance described the steel plant as an economic lifeline that helped move his grandparents from rural Kentucky into the American middle class.
He recalled his grandfather proudly pointing to older Ford and Chevrolet vehicles and saying their steel had been produced by his company.
Vance’s rise to the vice presidency generated pride in Middletown, although some residents have objected to how he depicted the city in his book. Vance wrote that children called it “Middletucky” because of the many Kentucky transplants and associated them with drug addiction, “Mountain Dew mouth” and troubled family relationships.
Trump and Vance won approximately 62% of the vote in Middletown’s precincts during the 2024 presidential election. Vance’s mother, Beverly Aikins, and his sister still live there.
Vance promotes Trump’s tax policies during local stops
Before arriving at the steel plant, Vance stopped at a pastry shop to buy doughnuts and remind workers about the “no tax on tips” provision included in the tax and spending law Trump signed last year, according to a video posted by an aide.
After the campaign event, Vance visited a Cincinnati chili restaurant, where he served beer and chili-topped hot dogs covered with cheese.
“Nice pour, JD!” one person shouted. Another called out, “I’ll take a beer back here.”
Republicans face competitive Ohio races
Ohio has moved firmly toward Republicans during the Trump eralosing its former reputation as a national political bellwether. Democrats nevertheless believe they have an opportunity to compete for both the governorship and a U.S. Senate seat in 2026.
Republican Sen. Jon Husted, who was appointed to replace Vance in the Senate, is running against former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. Brown, known for his working-class political message, lost his reelection campaign to Republican Bernie Moreno in 2024.
Brown has focused on public opposition to artificial intelligence data centers, airing advertisements that describe Husted as the “face of data centers in Ohio.”
The National Republican Senatorial Committee warned in a recent memo that the backlash surrounding data centers has made Husted vulnerable.
In the governor’s race, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, a Vance ally, is competing against Democrat Amy Acton. Democrats have not won the Ohio governorship in two decades.
Husted and Ramaswamy both spoke before Vance at the steel plant, along with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
More campaign travel planned ahead of the midterms
The Middletown appearance was Vance’s first public visit since the birth of his fourth child in July. His family maintains a home in Cincinnati, where they sometimes spend weekends.
Vance is also scheduled to travel to Brewer, Maine, where former Republican Gov. Paul LePage is running against Democratic state auditor Matt Dunlap in a competitive U.S. House district.
The trip is part of a broader increase in Vance’s political travel as Republicans work to protect their congressional majorities in November.
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