IT’S TIME FOR JD VANCE TO MAKE A SOFT EXIT FROM MAGA
Once upon a time, JD Vance was a bestselling author and public intellectual who warned us about the dangers of populism and demagoguery. He described Donald Trump as “cultural heroin” and lamented how the Republican Party was losing its soul. Then came the pivot, something straight out of a WWF script.
Fast-forward to now: JD Vance is the Vice President of the MAGAverse, standing loyally at Trump’s side as if none of those old convictions ever existed. But as the Trump movement starts to fray around the edges—legally, morally, and electorally—Vance may want to start dusting off those early values. Quietly, carefully, but deliberately.
Trump is facing a wall of legal woes, increasingly erratic behavior, and growing fatigue from swing voters and younger conservatives who are more interested in future policy than 2020 grievances. As that golden MAGA halo starts to dim, the smart players are planning their exit strategies. Vance would be wise to be one of them.
And let’s be honest: there’s also the not-so-small matter of succession. Donald Trump has shown noticeable lapses in cognitive sharpness—forgetting names, slurring speech, looping the same stories—and there’s no guarantee he makes it to 2029 without stepping aside or being removed. If that moment comes, JD Vance doesn’t just become a vice president with a loyalty complex—he becomes President of the United States.
This isn’t just about positioning for 2028 or currying favor with donors. This is about preparing to lead.
If Vance wants to avoid becoming an unelected footnote in a chaotic chapter of American history, he’ll need credibility beyond the MAGA base. He’ll need to look like a leader, not a loyalist.
The JD Vance who once criticized Trump had something rare in politics: clarity and moral reasoning. The MAGA version is a Twitter brawler and culture war sidekick. If Vance wants a future beyond being “Trump’s guy,” he should start recalibrating his image, not with a dramatic break, but a quiet return to principle and integrity.
He can start by emphasizing policy over personality, showing independence in decision-making, and gradually reminding voters of the thoughtful, policy-minded conservative he once was.
That’s not betrayal….it’s preservation, because when the post-Trump GOP rebuilds—and it will rebuild—it’s not going to be looking for sycophants, it’s going to be looking for survivors.
And survivors don’t wait until the ship is sinking to look for a lifeboat.
