Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear’s recent remarks targeting Ohio Senator and vice presidential candidate JD Vance have sparked controversy on social media. During his speech at the Democratic National Convention, Beshear addressed the topic of abortion and Vance’s previous statements.
In a Tuesday interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Beshear was prompted to discuss the Republican Party’s position on abortion and took the opportunity to criticize Vance, whom he has previously labeled a “phony.” Beshear stated, “JD Vance calls pregnancy resulting from rape ‘inconvenient.’ Inconvenience is traffic. Make him go through this.”
Beshear further accused Republicans of lacking empathy regarding abortion issues. Following the interview, Vance reacted to Beshear’s comments on X, formerly Twitter, suggesting that the governor seemed to imply he wished harm upon a member of Vance’s family.
“What a disgusting person,” Vance remarked.
Later on Tuesday, Beshear clarified that he did not intend to suggest anyone from Vance’s family should face such a fate, dismissing Vance’s reaction as “ridiculous” and an attempt to divert attention. “Obviously, I don’t wish anybody harm, nor would I ever, but what this is about is JD Vance trying to make himself the victim,” Beshear asserted.
Beshear’s comments referenced a statement Vance made in September 2021 about whether anti-abortion laws should include exceptions for rape and incest victims. At that time, Vance noted, “It’s not whether a woman should be forced to bring a child to term, it’s whether a child should be allowed to live, even though the circumstances of that child’s birth are somehow inconvenient or a problem to the society.” He later denied that he was referring to rape as merely an inconvenience.
Vance has previously argued that abortion policy should primarily be a state matter while suggesting a minimum national standard. He also indicated that a future Trump administration would not support a federal ban on the abortion pill mifepristone, which was included in Project 2025, a conservative policy initiative promoted by The Heritage Foundation.