January 1, JD Vance Hits Back on Gas Prices and DC Corruption at Michigan Town Hall

Wyatt’s Take

• JD Vance stood firm defending the Trump agenda while facing tough questions from Michigan voters about gas prices and border chaos.
• Working families are still paying the price for Biden-era policies that shut down American refineries and flooded the country with foreign workers.
• Vance made clear that America must put its own citizens first, not foreign interests or radical political correctness.

Vice President JD Vance took questions from Michigan voters during a town hall in Flat Rock as the state becomes a key battleground in the fight for Senate control.

The town hall came just weeks before the midterm elections as Republicans fight to keep their majorities in the House and Senate.

The first question came from a Detroit barber who wanted to know why gas prices remain much higher than during Trump’s first term.

Vance pointed to Iran’s attacks on commercial shipping and the resulting disruption to global energy markets.

“That’s actually the biggest reason why gas prices are so high, because when Joe Biden was president, we had about 20% of American refining capacity that went offline,” Vance said.

Vance explained that the Trump administration is using the Defense Production Act to help restore domestic refining capacity, though rebuilding that infrastructure will take time.

CBS News anchor Tony Dokoupil pushed back on Vance’s attempts to blame Biden, noting that Trump and Vance have been in office for nearly two years while Americans continued to face high gas prices.

Dokoupil shifted the conversation to government corruption, citing a Fox News poll showing that 60% of voters were extremely concerned about the issue.

He asked Vance whether anything he had witnessed inside the Trump White House made him feel “squeamish.”

“You certainly see evidence of corruption in Washington, D.C. Do I see evidence of corruption from the president of the United States, from the administration? No, Tony, I just don’t,” Vance said.

Vance said selling access to the White House would be “disgusting and despicable” and that anyone responsible should face consequences.

Dokoupil then asked whether Vance would comply with subpoenas investigating alleged corruption if Democrats took control of Congress in January.

“Of course, of course I will,” Vance said. “Look, we follow the law. I follow the law.”

Vance was confronted over his immigration rhetoric by a naturalized U.S. citizen who said she voted for the vice president but questioned why the administration was “scapegoating immigrants.”

The voter, who immigrated to the United States 20 years ago, challenged Vance over his characterization of certain H-1B visa workers as “foreign indentured servants.”

“To the extent that my rhetoric has been imperfect here, that’s on me,” Vance said.

But Vance defended his remarks, arguing that his criticism was aimed at companies exploiting foreign workers rather than immigrants themselves.

“That’s not a criticism of the H-1B visa holder. That’s a criticism of a company who brings a person in, who sometimes will literally lay off an American worker,” Vance said.

Dokoupil pressed Vance on whether his rhetoric and that of the Trump administration dehumanized immigrants.

“My goal here is not to dehumanize any immigrant. And in fact, I love a number of immigrants,” Vance said.

But Vance argued that allowing too many immigrants into the country too quickly could undermine social cohesion and fundamentally change American communities.

“I have neighbors, I have friends of mine who literally don’t know a single person in their neighborhood who speaks the language they do,” Vance said. “I don’t think it’s unreasonable for an American citizen to want to share their community with people they have something in common with.”

Though the town hall was pre-recorded, Vance took to X shortly after it aired to share footage showing a burning building in France amid mass riots.

“Western liberals imported the third world into France and other countries in the name of diversity and compassion. They ignored fundamental questions of assimilation and compatibility,” Vance posted on X.

“They were told it would lead to this and they didn’t listen. I pray that France, a beautiful country of amazing people, will stop this madness before more of its landmarks burn,” Vance continued.

Dokoupil pressed Vance on why the war with Iran had dragged on longer than the Trump administration anticipated, asking the vice president, “Why haven’t we won decisively?”

Vance argued that the U.S. had “in some ways” already won the war, claiming that American military strikes had successfully destroyed Iran’s nuclear program.

“Have we destroyed the Iranian nuclear program? The answer is yes,” Vance said.

Vance was also urged by a Michigan voter to condemn antisemitism within his own political base.

The question came from Eddie Rubin, a lifelong Democrat whose 5-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son survived the attack at Temple Israel, which occurred in March in Michigan.

“I condemn anti-Semitism. I condemn Jew hatred,” Vance said.

But Vance also turned the conversation to Michigan’s Senate race, criticizing Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed for his response to the synagogue attack.

Vance pointed to El-Sayed’s remark that “hurt people hurt people.”

“He went around and said, ‘hurt people, hurt people’, showing empathy, not with you and your family, which is where I think that we got to show empathy. But showing empathy to a guy who nearly killed hundreds of innocent children,” Vance said.

Wyatt Matters

Middle America still believes in putting American families first, securing our borders, and keeping faith with the working men and women who built this country. The people of Michigan and across the heartland want leaders who remember that government answers to citizens, not the other way around.