VP J.D. Vance Claps Back at Interviewer Over ‘Intellectual’ Label: “What an Asshole This Guy Is!”

Vice President J.D. Vance delivered a fiery—and humorous—moment Tuesday night at a black-tie event in Washington, D.C., after an interviewer described him as an “intellectual,” prompting the VP to jokingly but sharply push back.

The event, hosted by conservative think tank American Compass, featured Vance in conversation with founder Oren Cass. During his introduction, Cass referenced Vance’s time as a writer for National Review and called him an intellectual “in the good sense of the term.”

Vance didn’t let it slide.

“I come here and you insult me,” Vance fired back with a grin.
“And you call me ‘an intellectual,’ remind me that I wrote for the National Review. What an asshole this guy is!”

The audience erupted in laughter and applause as Cass laughed off the moment, quipping in return:

“That’s fair. I will admit that I, too, wrote for National Review.”

While the exchange was clearly tongue-in-cheek, it reflected Vance’s no-nonsense approach—and a growing sentiment on the New Right that many traditional conservative institutions, including National Review, have abandoned the grassroots movement behind President Donald J. Trump.

Vance: Courts Should Defer to the President on Immigration

The vice president is not just making headlines for quick wit—he’s also reframing the national debate on the role of the judiciary.

During a recent appearance on The New York Times podcast Interesting Times, Vance challenged Chief Justice John Roberts’ assertion that the courts should function as a check on the executive branch. Vance argued that in key areas like immigration enforcement, the courts should defer to the elected president’s judgment.

“I thought that was a profoundly wrong sentiment,” Vance said.
“That’s one half of his job, the other half of his job is to check the excesses of his own branch.”

“You cannot have a country where the American people keep on electing immigration enforcement and the courts tell the American people they’re not allowed to have what they voted for.”

His remarks were in response to Roberts’ speech in Buffalo, New York, where the Chief Justice declared that the judiciary must be independent in order to “strike down acts of Congress or the president.”

But Vance, echoing Trump’s America First vision, argued that unelected judges should not override the will of the people, especially when it comes to defending the nation’s borders.

“I think the courts need to be somewhat deferential,” he told Douthat.
“In fact, I think the design is that they should be extremely deferential to these questions of political judgment made by the people’s elected president.”

Due Process for Illegal Immigrants? “It’s an Open Question,” Vance Says

Vance also weighed in on the ongoing immigration crisis, especially after the Supreme Court recently blocked President Trump’s attempt to deport a group of migrants under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act.

“Yes, illegal immigrants, by virtue of being in the United States, are entitled to some due process,” Vance acknowledged.
“But the amount of process that is due and how you enforce those legislative standards... is very much an open question.”

Vance noted that thousands of migrants have entered the U.S. with violent intent, and emphasized that defending national security requires swift, decisive executive action, not prolonged courtroom debates.

“We don’t have 5 million uniform combatants,” he said, “but we do have thousands who intentionally came to the United States to cause violence.”