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Why Vance’s ‘childless, cat ladies’ comment could come back to haunt him

Published

2 years ago

July 28, 2024

Why Vance’s ‘childless, cat ladies’ comment could come back to haunt him

Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance is facing renewed criticism for saying the United States is run by ‘childless cat ladies.’ And political experts say such rhetoric could have disastrous effects on a demographic the GOP desperately needs to win in November: women.

In a recently resurfaced interview with Fox News from 2021, Vance, who at the time was running for Ohio’s Senate, let his feelings about childless women be known.

“We are effectively run in this country, via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made, and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too. And it’s just a basic fact if you look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC — the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children. And how does it make any sense that we’ve turned our country over to people who don’t really have a direct stake in it.”

Women, however, will undoubtedly wield enormous influence in this year’s U.S. election. Yet, part of earning their vote is understanding their changing lifestyle choices. For example, in the U.S. there are more single women than ever before. Over half of women in the country are unmarried or separated, and a growing number of women are skipping motherhood entirely. By the age of 40, one in six women have never given birth.

Unmarried women, turned out to be a key electorate for President Joe Biden in 2020. The majority — 63 percent — of unmarried women voted for Biden, compared to the 36 percent of those who voted for Trump.

But instead of engaging this growing electorate of women, political experts said the right has decided to pose a sort of war with the exact demographic that could have a strong impact in November.

Lauren Leader, co-founder and CEO of All In Together — a nonpartisan organization focused on engaging women voters — said the right has been at war with women on many fronts. From holding outdated beliefs of women and what their roles should be at home and at work, the far right has long thought of women as inferior, she argued. “…It’s always been a huge weakness for Republicans and part of why they have lost every election since 2016. But Trump has embraced the groups that push this.”

What might not be evident to Vance is that the so-called ‘childless cat lady’ remark might be more aspirational than disparaging. From viral trends like the “cool aunt,” which celebrates the financial freedom and personal independence reaped by women without children of their own, to the data that shows women without children or spouses are the happiest subgroup in the population. Indeed, many single, childless women are flourishing.

And contrary to Vance’s argument that these women having “no stake in America,” single women in the U.S. are contributing in a big way. Lauren Napier, founder of the SP1NSTER — a lifestyle brand that harnesses the collective spending power of single women — said “child-free women have money and time. There are trillions of dollars circulating the U.S. economy completely powered by single women. There’s even is a movement called “S.I.N.K.”, single income no kids.”

Napier, who is child-free by choice, said she wouldn’t have it any other way. “It is no different than bachelorhood — which is revered. I have a very full life and I go to bed and wake up at my own pace. This weekend I am taking a French lesson and floral design class with a group of girlfriends. I have a date tomorrow night and I am headed out to a mixer this evening. If I decide to make a night of it, I can because I am my only obligation,” she shared.

Vance’s “cat lady” comment, however, shows a real disconnect with some women’s ability to have children in the first place, said political analyst and Republican consultant, Elise Jordan.

“It’s a cruel, insensitive comment reflective of a judgmental worldview steeped in male ignorance. To ignore the intense grief of desiring a child and being unable to conceive shows a basic gap in one’s humanity. Women lucky enough not to suffer infertility have a friend or sister in their life who has struggled to conceive. Vance managed to throw salt in a universal wound for women and the men who love them,” said Jordan.

Experts also pointed out the very real political and economic factors that influence a woman’s ability to have children: skyrocketing child care costs, cost of living, health care, abortion rights, and even maternal mortality rates.

Vance’s unearthed comment was criticized by women who are child-free, often not by choice. For Ashley Reece, a 33-year-old writer in New York, having a child is something she wants. Reece — who also happens to be a proud cat owner — planned to have a child with her husband. But in 2022, he passed away from cancer.

“For someone who has kind of made so much of their brand as being this well-rounded person going from rural beginnings to Harvard Law, you would think that this person would have a pretty diverse view of the world and the people within it,” said Reece who is a Democrat. “And for him to just kind of paint everyone who’s childless as some like miserable cat owner, who has no stake in the future… his views are a little more stunted than he he’d like to believe.”

Actress Jennifer Aniston, who doesn’t have biological children of her own, recently criticized Vance on her Instagram Stories, “I truly can’t believe this is coming from a potential VP of the United States. All I can say is… Mr. Vance, I pray that your daughter is fortunate enough to bear children of her own one day. I hope she will not need to turn to IVF as a second option. Because you are trying to take that away from her, too.”

Jordan said Vance’s recent remarks and the Republican party’s continued efforts to restrict reproductive rights, will only hurt them politically come November.

“Democrats should welcome a continued barrage of cruel comments as a political gift and easy cannon fodder. Access to life-saving medical care without government interference is an issue of basic human freedom. Any time Democrats can remind voters that elected Republicans inserted the government into the privacy and sanctity of personal healthcare decisions, they win politically.”

Vance, however, defended his remarks about Democratic women during an interview with Megyn Kelly on Friday.

“I know the media wants to attack me and wants me to back down on this, Megyn, but the simple point that I made is that having children, becoming a father, becoming a mother, I really do think it changes your perspective in a pretty profound way,” he said.

“It’s not a criticism of people who don’t have children. I explicitly said in my remarks, despite the fact the media has lied about this, that this is not about criticizing people who, for various reasons, didn’t have kids. This is about criticizing the Democratic party for becoming anti-family and anti-child,” he said.

Daniela Pierre-Bravo is a journalist, author, and founder of Acceso Community — a mentorship program for professional women. She is the co-author of “Earn It” with Mika Brzezinski. Her solo book, “’The Other: How to Own Your Power at Work as a Woman of Color,” is out now. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @dpierrebravo

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US says Kuwait accidentally shot down 3 American jets

Published

56 minutes ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

US says Kuwait accidentally shot down 3 American jets

The U.S. and Israel have been conducting strikes against targets in Iran since Saturday morning, with the aim of toppling Tehran’s clerical regime. Iran has fired back, with retaliatory assaults featuring missiles and drones targeting several Gulf countries and American bases in the Middle East.

“All six aircrew ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition. Kuwait has acknowledged this incident, and we are grateful for the efforts of the Kuwaiti defense forces and their support in this ongoing operation,” Central Command said.

“The cause of the incident is under investigation. Additional information will be released as it becomes available,” it added.

In a separate statement later Monday, Central Command said that American forces had been killed during combat since the strikes began.

“As of 7:30 am ET, March 2, four U.S. service members have been killed in action. The fourth service member, who was seriously wounded during Iran’s initial attacks, eventually succumbed to their injuries,” it said.

Major combat operations continue and our response effort is ongoing. The identities of the fallen are being withheld until 24 hours after next of kin notification,” Central Command added.

This story has been updated.

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Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Published

13 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Satellite images provide view inside Iran at war

Smoke rises over Konarak naval base in southern Iran on Sunday. The base was one of hundreds of targets of U.S. and Israeli forces throughout the country.

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Commercial satellite images are providing a unique look at the extent of damage being done to Iran’s military facilities across the country.

The U.S. and Israeli military campaign opened with a daytime attack that struck Iranian leadership in central Tehran. Smoke was still visible rising from Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s compound following the attack that killed the supreme leader.

An image by the company Airbus taken on Saturday shows the aftermath of an Israeli strike on Iran’s Leadership House in central Tehran. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the opening wave of attacks.

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Israel and the U.S. have gone on to strike targets across the country. Reports on social media indicate that there have been numerous military bases and compounds attacked all over Iran, and Iran has responded with attacks throughout the Middle East.

U.S. forces have also been striking at Iran’s navy. In a post on his social media platform, President Trump said that he had been briefed that U.S. forces had sunk nine Iranian naval vessels. U.S. Central Command did not immediately confirm that number but it did say it had struck an Iranian warship in port.

An image captured on February 28 shows a ship burning at Iran's naval base at Konarak.

An image captured on Saturday shows a ship burning at Iran’s naval base at Konarak.

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Numerous satellite images show burning vessels at Konarak naval base in southern Iran. Images also show damage to a nearby airbase where hardened hangers were struck by precision munitions.

Hardened aircraft shelters at Konarak airbase were struck with precision munitions.

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And there was extensive damage at a drone base in the same area. Iran has launched numerous drones and missiles toward Israel and U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. Many drones have been intercepted but videos on social media show that some have evaded air defenses and caused damage in nearby Gulf countries. In Dubai, debris from an Iranian drone damaged the iconic Burj Al Arab, according to a statement from Dubai’s government.

Buildings at an Iranian drone base at Konarak were destroyed in the strikes.

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Iran’s most powerful weapons are its long-range missiles. The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have hidden the missiles deep inside mountain tunnels. Images taken Sunday in the mountains of northern Iran indicate that some of those tunnels were hit in a wave of strikes.

Following Khamenei’s death, Iran declared 40 days of mourning. Satellite images showed mourners gathering in Tehran’s Enghelab square on Sunday.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told NPR on Sunday that Iran will continue to fight “foreign aggression, foreign domination.”

A White House official told NPR that Trump plans to talk to Iran’s interim leadership “eventually,” but that for now, U.S. operations continue in the region “unabated.”

A large crowd of mourners fill Enghelab Square in Tehran on Sunday, following the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike.

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Video: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

Published

22 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Video: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

new video loaded: What the Texas Primary Battle Means for the Midterms

The first battle of the midterm elections will be the U.S. Senate primary in Texas. Our Texas bureau chief, David Goodman, explains why Democrats and Republicans across the U.S. are watching closely to see what happens in the state.

By J. David Goodman, Alexandra Ostasiewicz, June Kim and Luke Piotrowski

March 1, 2026