Whoa: Trump Boots Vance From Iran War

Last week, J.D. Vance made waves by declaring that the Iran War and Israel cost Republicans control of Congress. Today, Vance finds himself removed from both – by executive order. 

This morning, Donald Trump declared on Truth Social that he had a new assignment for his vice president, which has more to do with vice than with being president. Trump has tasked Vance to put his "complete and total attention" on corruption in Democrat-run states, which Trump insists is a much higher priority than negotiating with Iran. In fact, Trump declared in the same post that we don't need a deal with Iran at all:

I have asked Vice President Vance to focus his complete and total attention on the Massive Corruption and Crime taking place in Democrat run Cities and States throughout the U.S. The Blue States, such as Minnesota, California, Illinois, and many more, are all poorly run, corrupt disasters. Billions of Dollars is being stolen each and every month. Our Budget could be quickly BALANCED with the correction of this large scale criminal activity. CORRUPTION is in the Democrat Leadership’s blood! We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT

This is partly in response to Democrats claiming they will investigate corruption within the Trump administration as soon as they take over Congress in January. Trump's follow-up stuck the landing on that point:

If the Democrats want to “root out corruption,” they should start with investigating Blue States, perhaps the most CORRUPT governmental structures and entities anywhere on Earth. Big time money is being stolen each and every hour of the day! President DJT

This is not a new assignment for Vance, as Axios notes in its report on the statement. Vance has chaired Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud for the last several months, which has mainly focused on Democrat-run states and cities anyway. Trump's order for Vance to focus exclusively on this effort is new, and it follows Vance's public criticism of Trump's approach to Iran and Israel.

It also follows a last-ditch effort by Vance to cut a deal:

The big picture: After Vance concluded that the Iran war drove Republicans' stunning midterm walloping, Trump is reorienting his No. 2's focus — and directing him to go after Democrats the president labeled as "CORRUPT AND EVIL." ...

Catch up quick: Vance was recently heavily involved in a push to reach a new ceasefire with Iran and resume nuclear negotiations, Axios' Barak Ravid reported.

Vance was a skeptical voice in Trump's inner circle about the war, Ravid reported, and led U.S. negotiating delegations after it began.

This is not a 'redirect.' This is a straightjacket. And it's also a trap, whether Vance sees it or not. 

First off, it's a clear signal from Trump that he doesn't trust Vance when it comes to foreign policy, especially on Iran. That signal will reverberate in the 2028 presidential primaries, where Vance has mainly led in far-too-early polling for the Republican nomination. This amounts to a vote of no confidence from Trump on national security matters, and others in the party and the MAGA movement will see it that way. 

Second, Trump has put Vance into the hatchet-man position in his partisan feuds with Democrats. Whether or not Trump uses Vance to play the bad cop while Trump plays good cop to get some deals or Trump washes his hands of Congress for the next two years, Vance will still be the administration's hatchet man. To succeed in 2028, Vance would have to establish at least some credible claim to cooperation as well as success in statesmanship. His new assignments give him exactly zero opportunities in either direction. 

This sends an emphatic signal to our partners in the Persian Gulf, and to Democrats here in the U.S. Trump does not want a quick exit from the Hormuz crisis. He's already paid the domestic political risk. Trump can now keep the blockade/embargo on for the next several months and let the IRGC slowly strangle in it. Diplomacy on the war now passes back to Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth, who have apparently finally prevailed over Vance in the administration's internal debates. That amplifies Rubio's positioning for 2028 if he chooses to run, especially if the outcome of the war gives Trump and the U.S. what it really wants – a regime collapse in Tehran and the larger collapse of the terror networks in the Middle East. 

Vance had already hinted that he might want to take some time off after this term to be more present with his young family. Trump may have made that choice for Vance. 

Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are once again respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.

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