JD Vance, the Republican vice presidential nominee, held a rally just outside the city of Sparta, north of Grand Rapids, Tuesday. Hundreds of people came out to the venue at Apple Valley Events in support of Vance and former President Donald Trump's campaign for the White House.
Vance, who is currently a U.S. Senator from Ohio, spent about 45 minutes addressing the crowd and taking questions from the media. He focused his remarks on immigration, jobs, and what he called the elephant in the room: the recent assassination attempts on Donald Trump.
Vance said rhetoric from Democrats led to an attempt on Trump's life in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, and an apparent effort to assassinate the former president on his Florida golf course over the weekend.
“Do I think the rhetoric is all one-sided? Of course not, right? There are absolutely people on our side who say things that I think are ridiculous that they shouldn’t say. But what is one-sided is that our guy is the one who keeps getting shot at," Vance said.
(Trump was not fired on in the Florida incident, according to the Secret Service. He was shot in the ear in the assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris both condemned political violence after the alleged would-be assassin was arrested in Florida.)
Vance also spoke on why he believes Michigan’s population has declined recently as the state makes efforts to draw legal immigrants and retain its current population to bolster economic competitiveness.
“Why have people left Michigan in the last 15, 20 years? Two things: high taxes and a lack of good jobs. So, the idea that the solution to a lack of jobs is to import a lot more people here who are going to compete with Michiganders for the jobs that are here? No. Create More jobs. That’s how you bring people back to Michigan.”
Governor Gretchen Whitmer has said plans from President Joe Biden and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris to promote electric vehicle production in Michigan will create jobs and boost the state's economy.
Trump was also in Michigan on Tuesday, holding a town hall event in Flint in the evening.
Michigan is considered a key state in the battle for the White House.
