As the Trump administration tries to chart a path out of its Jeffrey Epstein mess, senior aides turned to someone who has increasingly become one of the president’s chief problem solvers: Vice President JD Vance.
Vance originally planned to convene top White House and Justice Department officials at his residence Wednesday evening to talk over the administration’s handling of the Epstein case, as well as the need to craft a unified response, though the meeting appeared to have been moved amid intense media scrutiny.
Still, the planned meeting was just the latest high-stakes task following an array of challenges that Vance has taken on during the first six months of President Donald Trump’s administration. The vice president has tended to get involved in key priorities right as they reach their thorniest points, relying on his close ties to Trump and relationships across the GOP to manage relations on Capitol Hill, play peacemaker within the administration and serve as an envoy to the president’s broader MAGA base.
“JD has played the role of a good fireman,” said one close Trump ally. “And he’s carrying the hose as well as anyone could.”
The expansive role has thrust Vance into the center of a series of issues that could determine the trajectory of Trump’s presidency and the fate of his own future presidential ambitions.
Vance has so far won widespread praise as a driving force behind Trump’s agenda and vocal defender of his decision-making, even when that unwavering loyalty has put him at odds with some of his own past beliefs.
And it has tethered Vance’s political fortunes tightly to Trump’s presidency, putting him in pole position with the MAGA base early on — even at the risk of dooming his chances down the road with a broader electorate already showing signs of souring on the current administration.
Vance in recent weeks has emerged as a leading advocate for Trump’s new massive domestic policy law, ahead of a midterm election cycle that officials believe could turn on how the unpopular legislation is sold to voters. He’s sought to defend Trump’s handling of the Epstein files to the president’s base, insisting in a speech late last month that Trump “has nothing to hide.”
On Thursday, just hours after the planned Epstein-focused meeting, Vance will travel to Indiana to meet with top state officials as Trump pushes to redistrict the state to secure more GOP House seats.
The vice president’s increasingly visible role has further fueled chatter in GOP circles that the 41-year-old who once declared himself a “Never Trump guy” may have already established himself as the president’s natural successor.
Vance during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on July 8. – Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Asked Tuesday whether Vance was MAGA’s “heir apparent,” Trump offered his strongest support yet, saying his vice president was “most likely” the one best positioned to take up the mantle in 2028.
“It’s too early, obviously, to talk about it, but certainly he’s doing a great job, and he would be, probably, favorite at this point,” Trump said.
The president stopped well short of a full endorsement — and quickly namechecked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, another potential 2028 contender, proposing the two men run on the same theoretical ticket. But within Trump’s orbit, allies and advisers impressed by Vance’s unwavering public allegiance and behind-the-scenes efforts to speed the president’s priorities say he’s already emerged as a clear early frontrunner.
“As long as Trump continues to be successful, it’s his no matter what,” said one Trump adviser. “He’s going to be very tough to dislodge.”
A spokesperson for Vance did not respond to requests for comment.
Within the administration, Vance has been closely involved in decision-making around Trump’s top priorities, allies and advisers said. At times, he has served as the connective tissue between the White House and the broader GOP landscape — working the phones with lawmakers early to negotiate final votes for key Cabinet nominees like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. More recently, he tried to smooth over rifts between top officials at the DOJ and FBI over the initial decision not to release the Epstein files, even before Wednesday’s planned meeting.
On Capitol Hill, the former Ohio senator has been deployed countless times not only to cast tie-breaking votes in the Senate but also to close deals, assuage skeptical senators on nominees and be a credible pitch man for Trump. When Vance conveys Trump’s position, members and aides said, no one doubts Vance’s status as a member of the president’s inner circle.
While Vance spent just two years as a senator himself, those aides and members said he nevertheless has the perspective needed to navigate Congress’ quirks and act as a translator between the two sides of Pennsylvania Ave.
Vice President JD Vance walks at the US Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC on July 1. – Nathan Howard/Reuters
“He is really good at just being there, and showing up is 80% of the job,” GOP Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma told CNN. “When he talks, people know he is talking for the president, but he also understands the body.”
Vance has also cultivated close relationships with some in the MAGA base, providing the White House with a direct line to prominent influencers. That’s been critical as it has tried to quell the outrage over the Justice Department’s decision not to release the full Epstein case files, while also building out Vance’s own base of future support.
One influential pro-Trump commentator, Jack Posobiec, has gone as far as regularly referring to Vance as “48” — meaning the 48th president — in more than a dozen posts praising him on X over the last six months.
Still, Vance is far from the only vice president to harbor presidential ambitions — and Trump allies acknowledged that what seems like a glide path now could suddenly fall apart at any moment.
Vice presidents often find themselves stuck in the difficult spot between supporting the current president’s priorities while building the separate profile they need to power a run of their own. Vance has so far avoided getting stuck with a defined portfolio of intractable issues, in the way that his predecessor, Kamala Harris, was weighed down by her assignment to solve the root causes of migration at the southern border.
Instead, he’s lashed himself to Trump’s broader presidency by diving into an array of issues as they hit their crisis points, an approach that’s won plaudits within the administration but could weigh on him should Trump’s own approval ratings continue to sink.
There is added risk, too, when it comes to Trump himself, who values loyalty and remains a wild card — even to his own close allies — when it comes to how he will respond to a presidential contest that he doesn’t include him.
For now, people close to Trump said, Vance’s only sure path is to keep taking on the White House’s increasingly difficult problems — and hoping he can continue to solve them.
“It can all change, and I mean, in a minute,” the Trump ally said of Vance’s standing. “It may seem like a done deal now. But there’s a lot of time left in this game.”
Lauren Fox contributed to this report.
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