Vice President JD Vance's recent remarks regarding his wife's Hindu heritage were criticized by US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, who claimed that they contribute to the nation's already rising prejudice and anti Hindu sentiment.
"At a time when Hindu and Indian American communities are confronting a climate of rising prejudice, talk of mass deportations, and growing anti Hindu sentiment even against members of his own party, it's deeply disappointing that the Vice President would add to that climate through his recent comments while remaining silent in the face of hate," Krishnamoorthi wrote in an article on X.
Following comments made at a public event at the University of Mississippi, Vance, who is married to Indian American Usha Vance, came under fire.
"Now, most Sundays, Usha will come with me to church," he remarked in response to a query regarding his interfaith marriage. As I've told her, as I've stated in public, and as I'll say today in front of 10,000 of my closest friends, do I hope that she will ultimately be moved in the same way that I was in church? Yes, I sincerely hope that my wife will ultimately share my belief in the Christian gospel.
"But if she doesn't, then God says everyone has free will, so that doesn't cause a problem for me," he continued. You work on that with your loved ones, friends, and family."
"My wife did not grow up Christian," Vance, who became a Catholic in 2019, said of Usha's upbringing. She was raised in a Hindu household, but it's not a very religious one, in my opinion.
The Vice President continued by saying that his family's interfaith marriage has achieved harmony. "Everyone must make his own arrangements here. She is my best friend, which is how we came to our agreement. We talk to each other about this subject. We have made the decision to raise our children as Christians. Our two eldest children go to a Christian school. About a year ago, our 8 year old had his first communion. We arrived at our accord in this manner," he stated.
Online replies to the comments were harsh. Ezra Levant, a Canadian journalist, described his remarks as "disgusting," accusing him of showing disrespect for his wife's religious beliefs. "It's weird to throw your wife's religion under the bus, in public, for a moment's acceptance by groypers," Levant posted to X.
Vance defended his stance in response to Levant, stating that his marriage was based on "mutual respect, trust, and communication."
"What a disgusting comment, and it's hardly the only one along these lines," he wrote in a post on X. First of all, someone who appeared to be on my left asked me a question regarding my interfaith marriage. People are interested in me because I'm a public figure, and I wasn't going to sidestep the topic. Second, the gospel is genuine and beneficial to people, according to my Christian beliefs.
As I mentioned at the TPUSA, my wife is the greatest gift I have ever received. Many years ago, she herself urged me to reconnect with my faith.
Like many people in an interfaith marriage or any interfaith relationship she is not a Christian and has no intention of becoming one, but I hope she will eventually view things the way I do.
In any case, she is my wife, therefore I will always love and support her and talk to her about life, faith, and everything else. Third, posts such as this are a disgusting display of prejudice against Christians.
Indeed, Christians hold certain beliefs. Indeed, there are numerous repercussions to those ideas, one of which is our desire to spread them to others. Anyone who tells you otherwise has a hidden purpose because that is a perfectly regular occurrence."
