JD Vance calls 'childless cat lady' comments a 'thought experiment', pivots to pro-family policies

Republican vice president nominee JD Vance argued for pro-family policies in a round of Sunday television interviews after his viral comments on "childless cat ladies" has remained a dominant trend through the first month of his campaign.

Talking to CNN, CBS, and ABC, Vance said his remarks about the Democratic Party being dominated by "childless cat ladies" has been distorted, and he alleged that Democrats have made their own remarks that are anti-child and anti-family.

He made the now-viral comment in an interview on Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight" while campaigning for Ohio's U.S. Senate seat in 2021, and it has become a rallying cry for Democrats.

In pivoting his answers to tout policies for American families, he said he supports several policies that have become staples in Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign.

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JD Vance: US is run 'by a bunch of childless cat ladies'

In the 2021 interview, Carlson welcomed Vance on the show and asked him to explain his stance on what he had previously called "the childless left."

“We are effectively run in this country … by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made, and so they wanna make the rest of the country miserable, too,” Vance answered. "It's just a basic fact. You look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez), the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children."

(Harris has two stepchildren with her husband, Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff.)

Vance argued that people with children have a "direct stake" in the future of the country, and therefore are more worthy of votes and support in the interview.

Vance writes off some 2021 comments as a 'thought experiment'

Speaking on ABC News "This Week" Sunday, Vance said his comments about giving more votes to parents was not part of his policy platform.

"It’s not a policy proposal. It's a thought experiment, right?" Vance said. "There are, though, policy positions behind my view that the country should become more pro-family, right?"

In the interviews, Vance also told a story about receiving unexpectedly large medical bills when his wife gave birth to their second child, arguing for eliminating surprise medical bills for birthing-related care.

He also repeatedly bashed Harris for her stance on family policies, raising school closures and requiring masks for children during the COVID-19 pandemic as an example of anti-family policies on CNN's "State of the Union" with Dana Bash.

"She has said things like it's reasonable for people not to have children over climate change. It's the exact opposite message we should be sending to our young families," Vance told CNN. He was presumably referring to a moment last year when Harris said young climate leaders had talked with her about not having kids due to "climate change anxiety," though she did not explicitly endorse the idea, according to FactCheck.org.

Vance calls for family financial aid policies mirroring Harris campaign promises

Launching off his defense of the 2021 comments, Vance repeatedly called for expanding the childcare tax credit and making housing more affordable for families.

"I wanna expand the child tax credit, I wanna stop those surprise medical bills, I wanna make housing more affordable," he said on CNN.

When pressed on whether he agrees with President Joe Biden's administration on the childcare tax credit, he said it should be bigger and blamed Democrats for not getting it done. On CBS "Face the Nation," he called for a $5,000 per child tax credit. A bill aimed at boosting the child tax credit failed in the Senate last week after mostly Republican concerns about the legislation. Vance was not present for the vote, and CBS' Margaret Brennan noted it was a messaging bill.

Vance also said he wants to give everyone access to childcare.

Harris has touted helping the middle class as a key part of her campaign, advocating for affordable housing, affordable health care affordable child care, and paid leave. USA TODAY reached out to Vance's campaign for comment.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: JD Vance uses 'childless cat lady' questions to launch family policies