Vice-President J.D. Vance had a sit down with Kristen Welker. Naturally the subject of ending the war in Ukraine. To be clear the only reason a war is going on is Russia illegally and without provocation invaded and tried to take of Ukraine. Ukraine said no, get the hell out of our country and back into Russia. Russia refuses to do so. Putin wants Russia to keep every bit of illegally occupied (going back to 2014) territory AND get more. Ukraine says no way, so Vance says some kind of deal will have to be worked out. Here’s where the ‘lie or idiocy’ question comes in: Vance cited freaking WWII as ‘like all other wars’ as having been a negotiated settlement. No, it was ended by the UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER of the countries that started it!
At the Casablanca Conference in 1943 FDR and Churchill, leaders of the Allies announced nothing less than Unconditional Surrender from the Axis Powers would be accepted. Despite criticism of complete Unconditional Surrender with NO concessions of any kind causing the wars in both Europe and the Pacific to go on longer than they should have our side remained firm I know the GOP has done a number on education since I was in school (I’m in my late sixties) but we saw pictures and film clips of the ceremony on the Missouri of the signing of the documents ending WWII during history classes. It was also specifically taught (because it was true) the surrender of the Axis countries was UNCONDTIONAL.
Yet, as The Daily Beast reports Vance sat there on Meet the Press and told Welker it was a negotiated peace. Is Vance really that stupid? Possible. He does seem to have suffered a brain drain, and wasn’t exactly lighting up the business world before his mentor/benefactor Peter Theil got him elected to the Senate. It’s reasonable to wonder how much of Vance’s education “took.” However this is huge and like Vance I was a jarhead once upon a time. The sacrifices made and the blood spilled by our predecessors in the Pacific was part of teaching us the legacy we were expected to uphold. And it included how high the price was to ensure Japan got NOTHING it wanted. No concessions of any kind.
Decades later those months spent transforming from civilian to Marine are burned into my memory. I can recall like it was yesterday those classroom sessions and additional information provided by Drill Instructors. It was from our Senior DI that I (like most of my fellow recruits) learned about the Navajo Code Talkers who were so vital during the war. (He had Native American ancestry) That raises the possibility that Vance chose to again tell a f**king LIE. Sadly, from what I can tell Welker didn’t engage in any pushback.
JD Vance: "This is how wars ultimately get settled. If you go back to World War 2, if you go back to every major conflict in human history, they all end with some kind of negotiation." pic.twitter.com/FB4VJgljG5
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 24, 2025
There’s a truckload of bullshit to call on Vance’s comment that all wars in human history have ended with a negotiated settlement. Actually, history is filled with examples going back thousands of years of one country being so powerful as to simply conquer a weaker one and assume total control. More to the point though is that Vance should know damn well the what Gen. McArthur referred to as the Instruments of Surrender contained not a single concession to the countries who made war against the U.S. and our allies. Not one. It was UNCONDITIONAL. They would have to accept however we/the allies decided to treat those who surrendered.
Fortunately instead of the typical way the U.S. had the same guy who grudgingly stayed in DC to manage the overall war for FDR continue in government. It led to the Marshall Plan in Europe and a similar version in Japan and much of the Pacific where some nations had allies with Japan/the Axis. Winning a war is one thing. Winning the peace is another and usually falls short. But we got it right after WWII. I’ve always felt demanding Unconditional Surrender which had those defeated fearful turned out to be a masterstroke. By helping them rebuild and become part of a new post war world where nations (and their people) would be treated fairly is what made us leader of the free world.
I don’t know what they teach in schools anymore. Vance has kids so he likely does. Maybe history lessons don’t tell the truth that I was taught, and that too many of my fellow senior citizens I’ve sadly realized have forgotten. Or as part of their maniacal efforts to support Trump have chosen to ignore. Vance ought to know better than to say what he did and I believe that’s the case. He chose to LIE, assuming two things. First that most Americans wouldn’t know he was lying and second that Welker wouldn’t forcefully call him out and pointedly refer to the Unconditional Surrender signed on the Missouri to formally end WWII. (Germany had already signed one in Europe in the spring)
Had we better supported Ukraine and allowed it to fully take the war to Russia to get them to back down (and the denial/limiting of allowing certain actions over the border into Russia dates back to Biden) I truly believe Russia would be beaten. And having lost his gamble Putin would be dead and buried in an unmarked grave. But Ukraine has had to fight with one hand tied behind it’s back all along. And sometimes the other hand has been hobbled. Trump would give Ukraine to Putin if it was in his power to do so. It isn’t. So for him the next best option is to force (regardless of what what Vance said) Ukraine to accept ceding a large chunk of their country to Russia to end the war.
I don’t see this ending with an Unconditional Surrender from Russia. Some type of agreement will eventually get hammered out. If that agreement doesn’t make clear that Ukraine is the CLEAR victor and cripple Russia’s ability to rebuild it’s armed forces Russia will try again. In the meantime, if you’re a social media warrior join with those already calling out and/or mocking Vance. It’s dealer’s choice on whether to trash him for being stupid or being a liar.
