There is a widening divide between far-right Republicans and Democrats who have different ideas of what America should be and what the unity of the United States means. Who are we to say what’s right? What we can say, though, is that when a political figure like JD Vance speaks on it in a public space, he has a certain obligation to be more diplomatic than he was at the GOP midterm convention in September 2026.
In a clip shared across social media, including on X, Vance talks about a”dirtier” America that he and other Republicans have noticed, due to numerous ethnicities coming together in the U.S. as immigrants and to put down roots. According to the clip, Republicans are tired of being called racist. But what Vance says directly following that sentiment is, well, not not racist.
JD Vance’s comments about a “dirtier” multi-ethnic America rubbed people the wrong way.
Vance says it isn’t racist to notice that a multi-ethnic America is way dirtier.
— AF Post (@AFpost) September 11, 2026
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/OBnXnxK6HX
In the clip on X, Vance says, “We were tired of seeing the cartels and the criminals given free rein over our great country. And we were tired of being called racist for noticing that our country was becoming dirtier and poorer and less safe and less prosperous.”
The idea is that, per Vance’s speech, the country was “dirtier” and “poorer” before Donald Trump was elected to his second term in office. Since Vance speaks on cartels and the plight of Republicans not wanting to be called racist, and also mentions a dirty country, many users on X took that to mean that Vance was referring to the different ethnicities and cultures that make up the U.S.
On Reddit, a user commented, in reference to Vance’s speech, “How you going to get defensive about being called racist then immediately say some racist s–t.”
Another user wrote, “What a racist thing to say.”
“If America is ‘dirtier,’ it’s because environmental regulations are being weakened, disposable packaging has increased 10x, and funding to cities has decreased significantly, meaning less trash cleanup and graffiti management,” someone else commented on the post. “It’s because our infrastructure is crumbling around us while we give tax cuts to billionaires. It’s because school funding is fucked, and city schools don’t have enough resources.”
Some pointed out that JD Vance’s wife is a person of color with a different ethnic background.
On X, after the video was posted with part of Vance’s speech, users commented to point out that Vance is married to Usha Vance, a woman of color whose Indian parents immigrated to the U.S. before Usha was born. As a result, Vance’s own children are biracial and Usha’s Indian culture is part of their lives as much as Vance’s side of the family.
“I wonder how his own wife and kids feel when they hear him say s–t like this,” a user on X wrote. “And how are they clapping when he’s contributing to this ‘dirtier’ America?? So the f–k is Trump [because] his wife is an immigrant who can barely speak f–king English. But y’all still hate…okay.”
Another person wrote, “And his Indian wife smiles with pride.”
JD Vance once defended offensive texts from the Young Republican group.
This is far worse than anything said in a college group chat, and the guy who said it could become the AG of Virginia. I refuse to join the pearl clutching when powerful people call for political violence. pic.twitter.com/kV57Wq7BLG
— JD Vance (@JDVance) October 14, 2025
In 2025, Vance publicly defended leaked text messages between members of the Young Republican National Federation, an organization for Republicans between the ages of 18 and 40. The offensive messages included, according to Politico, racial slurs, racial stereotypes, references to Hitler, and mentions of using Nazi gas chambers.
Afterward, Vance spoke out against “ruining” the lives of the young people responsible for the texts.
“I really don’t want us to grow up in a country where a kid telling a stupid joke, telling a very offensive, stupid joke is cause to ruin their lives,” Vance said at the time, per PBS. He also said that he would want to tell his kids, “especially” his sons, “Don’t put things on the internet, like, be careful with what you post. If you put something in a group chat, assume that some scumbag is going to leak it in an effort to try to cause you harm or cause your family harm.”
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