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Obama Calls Out Vance in Blunt Criticism Over 'We the People' Remarks

Former President Barack Obama sharply criticized Vice President JD Vance during a Thursday conversation about the Reconstruction era, accusing him of promoting a narrow vision of American identity. According to Fox News…

Andrew PowellJul 20, 20262 min read

Barrack obama JD Vance Politics U.S. News

Former President Barack Obama sharply criticized Vice President JD Vance during a Thursday conversation about the Reconstruction era, accusing him of promoting a narrow vision of American identity.

According to Fox News, while speaking with author Malcolm Gladwell, Obama argued that many of the debates surrounding Reconstruction remain relevant today, including questions about citizenship, voting rights, and who belongs in American society.

Obama pointed to what he described as a growing effort within one major political party to define "We the people" in more restrictive terms.

"When you have the vice president, current vice president, making a speech that is basically a blood and soil version of 'We the people,' that it matters who your parents were and how long they've been here despite him being married to a daughter of an immigrant himself," Obama said.

The phrase "blood and soil" is historically associated with Nazi Germany and White nationalism.

Obama's remarks came as he discussed broader debates over citizenship and belonging.

He said those questions remain part of the country's political conversation, even if they are not always expressed as openly as they were in the past.

Gladwell also accused Vance of hypocrisy, arguing that the vice president was making what he described as a "nativist argument" while married to Usha Vance, the daughter of Indian immigrants.

Obama agreed with the characterization but said the contradiction itself could be viewed as a sign of progress.

"That is progress. Listen, hypocrisy is progress," Obama said. "It is, because it means that you feel guilty enough to either lie to yourself or others. And that is better than not even thinking about the idea that maybe you’re doing something wrong."

Vance's most recent major speech came earlier this month during a July 4 celebration in New York marking America's 250th birthday.

In his remarks, he urged Americans to reject what he called a "two-dimensional view" of the country that focuses only on its failures.

Obama has generally avoided directly discussing Vance in public.

During the 2024 presidential campaign, however, he appeared to criticize then-candidate Donald Trump's selection of Vance as his running mate, questioning whether voters wanted someone he described as "inexperienced and polarizing" or a candidate who believed "every voice counts and everyone deserves an equal chance."

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