With the selection of J.D. Vance to be his vice president, Donald Trump wanted to double down on his America First agenda to make sure that he – the living martyr – wins re-election. And, with Vance as his political heir, Trump wanted to ensure that he supplanted Ronald Reagan as the greatest Republican of the past 120 years.

Unfortunately for Trump, Vance parked his inner-mongrel and walked onto the stage for the vice-presidential debate to face his direct political enemy with civility. Trump will not be happy that Vance said Walz “even sounds pretty good” on the structure of the tax system.

Civil: the Republican VP nominee J. D. Vance with his Democratic rival, Tim Walz, after the vice-presidential debate hosted by CBS News.Credit: AP/Matt Rourke

Vance was strong on the economy under Trump, and inflation under Biden and Harris. But Coach Walz won the round on abortion rights. “Abortion rights are a human right,” he said. “Just mind your own business on this.” And on guns: “It’s the guns. We have the capacity to find solutions.” But Vance’s support for the Second Amendment right to bear arms was much less fervent than Trump’s.

Debating in the aftermath of Iran’s missile barrage against Israel, both men supported Israel and its right to defend itself against Iran and Hezbollah. Vance dodged Trump’s signature issue on whether the 2020 election was stolen, with Walz not yielding on the former president’s........

© WA Today