Vice President JD Vance – and his communications director — fired back on Friday after a Wall Street Journal headline misrepresented Vance’s comments with regard to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
The WSJ’s piece framed Vance’s remarks as a direct threat to Russia, suggesting that he was leveraging American military intervention against Russian President Vladimir Putin in order to strong-arm an end to the war.
“Vance Wields Threat of Sanctions, Military Action to Push Putin Into Ukraine Deal,” the headline read – and an X post touting the article followed the same tone: “Exclusive: Vance pledged to hit Russia with sanctions and potentially military action if Putin won’t agree to a peace deal that guarantees Ukraine’s independence.”
Exclusive: Vance pledged to hit Russia with sanctions and potentially military action if Putin won’t agree to a peace deal that guarantees Ukraine’s independence https://t.co/ro5RonHzvb
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) February 14, 2025
But William Martin, Vance’s communications director, pushed back in a post of his own — complete with the transcript of the vice president’s actual words: “This is pure fake news. Compare the transcript of @JDVance’s conversation with WSJ to the headline being run here. The Vice President didn’t make any threats. He simply stated the fact that no one is going to take options away from President Trump as these negotiations begin.”
This is pure fake news. Compare the transcript of @JDVance‘s conversation with WSJ to the headline being run here.
The Vice President didn’t make any threats. He simply stated the fact that no one is going to take options away from President Trump as these negotiations begin. https://t.co/OSOo7ECBqr pic.twitter.com/MiAynLJZsi
— William Martin (@wsmartin218) February 14, 2025
When asked what tools the White House had at its disposal with regard to putting pressure on Putin to end the war, Vance was clear that Trump was willing to consider a wide range of possibilities, but was not going to commit to anything before negotiations.
“I think certainly, look, there are instruments of pressure, absolutely and again, if you look at President Trump’s approach to this, the range of options is extremely broad, and there are economic tools of leverage. There [are], of course, military tools of leverage. There’s a whole host of things that we can do. But fundamentally, I think the president wants to have a productive negotiation, both with Putin and with Zelensky,” Vance said.
“So just want to make sure I understand you correctly. You’re saying that even though the possibility of a Ukraine NATO accession at the end of this process, or even the presence of U.S. troops in Ukraine is not officially off the table?” the interviewer pressed further.
PRESIDENTS’ DAY SALE! 40% Off DailyWire+ Annual Memberships With Code DW40
Vance replied, “I think the President has been very clear that he doesn’t like the idea of moving Ukraine in[to] NATO. He’s been very clear about that. I also think the president is very clear that whenever he walks [into] a negotiation, everything is on the table.”
The vice president also addressed the issue himself in a post on X, saying, “President Trump is the ultimate deal maker and will bring peace to the region by ending the war in Ukraine. As we’ve always said, American troops should never be put into harm’s way where it doesn’t advance American interests and security. This war is between Russia and Ukraine.”
The fact that the WSJ twisted my words in the way they did for this story is absurd, but not surprising considering they have spent years pushing for more American sons and daughters in uniform to be unnecessarily deployed overseas.
— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 14, 2025
“The fact that the WSJ twisted my words in the way they did for this story is absurd, but not surprising considering they have spent years pushing for more American sons and daughters in uniform to be unnecessarily deployed overseas,” he concluded.
