JD Vance attempted a Hail Mary pass of sorts for the GOP in the form of homophobia on Tuesday when he used a midterm rally to imply that Texas Senate Democratic nominee James Talarico is gay.
“I love you, too, sir,” Vance began at an event in Tyler, Texas, seemingly in response to a rallygoer, before adding, “In a totally platonic way, to be clear.”
“I’m the vice president, not James Talarico.”
Vance’s schoolyard bully-like taunt takes notes from the anti-gay expression “no homo” that was popularized in the ’90s and ’00s and adds to his history of hurling anti-LGBTQ attacks toward Talarico, a majority of which have suggested that he’s a “freak” or a pedophile for supporting transgender children and drag performers (it’s worth noting that Vance himself has done drag). He’s even resorted to “Talafreako” as a way of referring to Talarico.
It’s actually impressive how much of a charisma void Vance is - I’ve seen him try to upgrade himself from “bully hype man” to “bully” in front of a crowd before and it’s just silence. I think the crowd is usually so zoned out when he talks they may not even notice.