NewsNation to Host Town Hall With JD Vance

JD Vance speaks in Tucson, Arizona, on Oct. 9, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

NewsNation has announced that it will host a town hall with Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) in Detroit on Oct. 24.

The event, which will start at 8 p.m., will be live-streamed exclusively on the social media platform X, with NewsNation maintaining editorial control, the network announced in an Oct. 17 press release.

Chris Cuomo will moderate the town hall, which will be held before a live studio audience of independents, Democrats, and Republicans, and is scheduled to last for one hour. The event will focus on key issues on the minds of Michiganders—such as the economy, health care, and the border—as they prepare to head to the polls on Nov. 5.

“We are honored to bring viewers a town hall with the Vice Presidential nominee for the Republican ticket,” Cherie Grzech, president of news and politics at NewsNation, said in a statement. “In this critical election year, the greater the number of opportunities for voters to hear directly from the candidates, the better it is for everyone.”

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic nominee for vice president, has been invited to take place in a similar event on the network. It’s unclear whether Walz, who was joined by former President Bill Clinton at a rally in Durham, North Carolina, on Thursday, has accepted NewsNation’s invitation.

Vance, who debated Walz in the first and only 2024 vice-presidential debate at the beginning of October, was out campaigning in Pittsburgh on Thursday.

The vice-presidential debate featured cordial exchanges between Vance and Walz, with both Midwestern politicians finding areas of agreement but also clashing on issues such as illegal immigration and housing. The Ohio Republican defended Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump’s policies, while the Minnesota governor touted his support for the Biden–Harris administration.

Vance’s performance in the Oct. 1 debate drew attention for his sharp defense of Trump’s “America First” policies, particularly on illegal immigration and the economy. He criticized the Harris administration’s handling of the border, arguing that it had led to rising housing prices and lower wages for domestic workers.

Walz, on the other hand, defended the Biden–Harris administration’s record, highlighting bipartisan efforts on immigration reform and pointing to record-high natural gas production as evidence of steady leadership on energy.

Despite their differences, both candidates found common ground in advocating for the reshoring of U.S. manufacturing and addressing child care shortages.

The two Midwesterners also agreed on the need for more affordable housing, but differed on how to provide it, highlighting differing attitudes on the role of government. Walz expressed his support for a proposal put forward by Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris for the government to provide $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time home buyers and a $10,000 tax credit.

Vance, by contrast, focused on rolling back red tape and letting the private sector play a greater role in alleviating the problem.

“We have a lot of federal lands that aren’t being used for anything,” Vance said. “They could be places where we build a lot of housing. And I do think that we should be opening up building in this country, we have a lot of land that could be used.”

While both candidates engaged in attacks during the debate, these were mostly directed at one another’s running mates.