Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) on Friday explained his “long memory” threat against opponents of former President Donald Trump, saying he was targeting “political operatives and lobbyists,” instead of members of Congress.
“I have a long memory. If you’re fighting Trump and his endorsed candidates politically today, don’t ask my help in a year with your legislation or your pet projects,” Vance warned in a post on X last week.
I have a long memory. If you’re fighting Trump and his endorsed candidates politically today, don’t ask for my help in a year with your legislation or your pet projects.
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) March 2, 2024
While some speculated Vance may have been threatening not to work with other members of Congress who had criticized the former president or who have not endorsed him, Vance said the post was directed at those outside of Congress in a conversation with the Washington Examiner on Friday.
“Look, if you want me to be explicit, it was directed specifically at some of the political operatives and the lobbyists who work in this town, who expect special things out of their representation and they certainly are not going to get it from me,” he said.
He said he is not targeting members of his own party, such as Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), who recently endorsed former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley before she dropped out of the race on Wednesday. A handful of other GOP senators have not yet endorsed Trump either.
“I have in fact worked with Collins on things in the past and I’ll continue to work with her. I’ve sponsored legislation with Elizabeth Warren. My attitude is you do good policy because it’s good policy,” Vance explained.
“But there are a lot of people who come to my office and ask for special favors and I’ve gotten frustrated with that dynamic. And I just wanted to issue a bit of a warning to the number of people who have come to my office and expect that I’m going to do something special for them because of their politics and that’s what I wanted to make clear,” Vance added.
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Vance endorsed Trump’s 2024 campaign over a year ago, in January 2023. The freshman senator received the endorsement of the former president during a crowded 2022 primary for Ohio Senate.