COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — “Hillbilly Elegy” author JD Vance sharply criticized Donald Trump during the 2016 election cycle, before changing course and embracing the former president. Vance rode a Trump endorsement to a seat in the U.S. Senate in 2022. He’s now one of Trump’s fiercest allies and defenders — and among those short-listed to be Trump’s vice presidential pick. Democrats criticize Vance for supporting severe abortion restrictions and saying he wouldn’t have certified the 2020 election. They say a Trump-Vance ticket “would sink the GOP into new depths of extremism.” Conservatives say Vance is a steady, principled and thoughtful leader.
