What are J.D. Vance’s economic views?
On Monday, as the Republican National Convention got underway, former President Donald Trump announced his running mate: author, venture capitalist and Ohio Senator J.D. Vance.
But what are his views on the economy like? And if a Trump/Vance ticket emerges the winner in November, what could the VP mean for spending, jobs and government’s role in business and trade?
“Marketplace Morning Report” host David Brancaccio spoke with Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics and trade at the libertarian-leaning Cato Institute, to discuss. The following is an edited transcript of their conversation.
David Brancaccio: We know where J.D. Vance is on Ukraine spending — he’s led the charge against more of it and wants Ukraine to settle with Russia. But what about what some would call industrial policy? Do we have any sense?
Scott Lincicome: J.D. Vance is an advocate of industrial policy, reflecting a pretty strong turn for most of the Republican Party from one of mostly free markets to a much more interventionist, a much more populist economic mindset, really going out there and picking winners and losers in the market to apply, you know, taxes and subsidies and whatever it takes to build that industry as the politician sees fit.
Brancaccio: And one of the tools there — I mean, you alluded to it — is trade policy but also tariffs. Donald Trump rejects the view of nearly every economist that tariffs are paid for by consumers and can be inflationary. J.D. Vance, he’s not an economist. Any sense he has a more nuanced view of this?
Lincicome: Well, it doesn’t seem so. He seems to be an equally potent advocate for using tariffs to do things like reduce the trade deficit and, of course, protect American companies and workers. Vance, being from Ohio, he’s been a strong advocate for the steel tariffs on those grounds. Now, as you said, the economics of that say a different story — they say the tariffs don’t work very well, they do raise prices. But for Vance, much like Trump, he’s ignoring that and really focusing on that very narrow benefit for a company or a set of workers.
Brancaccio: He knows something about Silicon Valley’s venture capital guy who’s worked with Palantir tycoon Peter Thiel. Think he’ll be tech-friendly when others are pushing to rein in those companies?
Lincicome: Well, it seems that he won’t be that friendly. I mean, he’s praised Federal Trade Commissioner Lina Khan’s approach to antitrust regulation, which has really heavily focused on breaking up Big Tech companies, blocking tech mergers. And Vance’s view is that she’s doing a great job and that these tech companies do need more government regulation. But nevertheless, it is anything but a light touch regulatory approach when it comes to Big Tech.
Brancaccio: I suppose, Scott, there are vice presidents and there are vice presidents. Some are stuck at the margins of policies when they get into office; others, like Dick Cheney under the second President Bush, are central. I guess we’ll have to see — if the Trump/Vance ticket prevails later this year — just what role Vance would have in policy.
Lincicome: Particularly given how limited J.D. Vance’s experience is in Washington and in policymaking, and we’re also seeing a pretty radical conversion from policy views that he held in just 2016 and 2017. So the extent to which J.D. Vance is a major player in policymaking remains to be seen.
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