When J.D. Vance arrived in Phoenix to make a speech concluding Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025 conference, he had a challenge and an opportunity. His challenge arose from the internecine MAGA warfare that had marked much of the event, which was advertised as a celebration of the Trump administration and a sign that the organization founded by the late Charlie Kirk was still going strong. His opportunity was to make himself the great unifier of the divided movement in the wake of new TPUSA president Erika Kirk’s endorsement of him this weekend as Trump’s successor.

It was a natural role for the veep, who has distinguished himself recently by refusing to find fault with or even acknowledge a dangerous new strain of extremism in the Republican ranks. At a time when various GOP luminaries such as Vivek Ramaswamy and Ted Cruz have been blasting the racists and antisemites in their midst, Vance’s policy has consistently been to redirect all fear and anger toward MAGA enemies, particularly immigrants and the perfidious politicians who have allowed them to enter the country. In Phoenix, though, Vance refined his message to........

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