J.D. Vance mocks Joe Biden, says he’s ‘really looking forward to hanging out’ with the former president at 9/11 memorial service: ‘I’m sure that we’ll have many, many intense intellectual conversations’
Vice President J.D. Vance drew laughs — and later backlash — after joking that he was “really looking forward” to spending time with former President Joe Biden at the upcoming 25th anniversary commemoration of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.
“As you guys can probably guess, I’m really looking forward to hanging out with Joe Biden,” Vance told reporters during a White House press briefing. “I’m sure that we’ll have many, many intense intellectual conversations and, you know, it’ll be great. We’ll have a great time with Joe Biden and the other presidents,” he added, laughing.
A divided 25th anniversary commemoration
Sept. 11 will mark the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that killed 2,977 people at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after passengers fought back against the hijackers, according to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.
The Trump administration will be split between two ceremonies. President Donald Trump is scheduled to attend a memorial service at the Pentagon, while Vance will represent the White House at the Ground Zero ceremony in New York City, according to The Hill and The Center Square.
Former Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton andGeorge W. Bush are expected to join Biden and Vance at Ground Zero. Former first ladies Jill Biden and Laura Bush, along with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, are also expected to attend, according to The New York Times.
Why Trump is skipping Ground Zero
The New York Times reported that Trump decided not to attend the Ground Zero ceremony partly because organizers denied his request to deliver a speech. Political speeches have been prohibited at the ceremony since 2012.
Trump disputed the report in a Truth Social post, calling it “more Corrupt News.”
“I’ve been to New York many times over the years and no one ever speaks, it’s a ‘solemn ceremony!’” he wrote, adding that he would “love not to speak, because I’m speaking all the time.”
When a reporter asked Vance during the Sept. 3 briefing why he, rather than Trump, would attend the New York ceremony, Vance said the decision was “decided as a team.”
Vance also struck a more reflective tone when discussing the significance of the event.
“I will say, as much as it’s tragic — and it was a terrible day — I am looking forward to it because it’s such an amazing honor to be able to get to go to New York and to share in that moment where the parents and the kids read the names of the people who lost their lives,” he told reporters, according to The Hill.