MSNBC host Rachel Maddow said one of the things she got wrong in 2024 was thinking Americans would be more "unnerved" by Republican Vice President-elect JD Vance.
"I thought people would be more unnerved by JD Vance," Maddow told news site, Semafor, which rounded up dozens of retrospectives from media figures across the political spectrum, adding, "Less the cat lady thing and more the ‘Americans [are] going to have to get over dictatorphobia’ Mencius Moldbug' thing," referring to the pseudonym for blogger Curtis Yarvin, whom Vance has followed for years.
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Donald Trump's selection of Vance as his running mate was greeted with scorn in the progressive media, and he was derided in the press as a drag on the ticket. However, Vance's skillful showings in combative interviews soon earned him a reputation as one of Trump's best surrogates, and he was also widely considered the winner of the only vice-presidential debate with Democratic counterpart Tim Walz.
Less than three years ago, Vance was part of a crowded field of contenders for the Ohio Republican Senate nomination. He went on to win the primary, defeat Democrat Tim Ryan and then join Trump's successful White House ticket in one of the quickest rises in political history.
Vance, 40, will be the third-youngest vice president in American history when he is sworn in next month. As Trump is prevented by the Constitution from seeking another term in office, Vance is already viewed as a front-runner for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination.
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Maddow was one of several media figures Semafor asked to reflect on what they got wrong from the 2024 election or culture at large. Answers ranged from failing to predict Elon Musk's influence to the continued relevance of X and the power of inflation on Americans' votes. Others, like The Bulwark Podcast host Tim Miller, admitted he was guilty of judging President Biden too "generously."
Mark Cuban simply replied, "I was wrong about the election outcome."
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Yet, Semafor wrote that "despite the fact that we and others embarrassingly missed the mark on a few occasions," they showed a "willingness to reflect on misconceptions."
