I too like beer, just like humans do. I’m a very normal human being. Not weird at all.
“Find a single redeeming quality about yourself”
“I…uh…i do have one of those i do…i promise”
See!? Easy AF question to answer. Worked for Boofman Kavanaugh!
It’s like he’s never even seen footage from a presidential campaign before. Or maybe no one told him he would handle all the human interactions to allow his boss to keep shouting nonsense.
It is kind of a shitty question with no good answer.
Given the response it sparked, it was a perfect question.
I can’t speak for the reporter, but I expect a question like that to trigger a memory in a person. A memory of that great time last month, where you got together with some old friends, you had a couple of beers, had tons of fun watching some stupid thing, and you did that other thing where everyone just laughed and laughed. This memory is the foundation for the response.
Or, it sparks nothing, because this memory doesn’t exist at all.
Professionals usually shouldn’t be caught off guard by any question. A proper dishonest politician has to dissect every question as it is spelled out. Then you respond instantly with a filler, while you mentally pick the correct memorized response to lead into.
Either he has nobody to drink beer with, is unprepared, or secretly an alcoholic or non-alcoholic.
“Secretly a non-alcoholic”, truly a devastating charge in Wisconsin. 😄
- I grew up in a rural area and have thoughts about cows
- I hate the Chicago Bears
- You have excellent roads and I want to talk about them
It’s not hard to answer for me and I’m just some guy
- Da Bears!
I think he wants to say he hates the Vikings in Wisconsin, right?
Um, in Wisconsin this is the easiest question to answer. Some easy options:
“Because I’m breathing.”
“Because it’s daytime.”
“Because it’s nighttime.”
“Because I’m buying.”
“Because we’re in Wisconsin.”
Admittedly, that last one probably won’t get votes, but ironically is why most people drink in Wisconsin.
“because I’m buyin’” is the best answer. Honestly. It would have been a slam dunk answer. Everyone laughs, it’s charming, funny, and you come across as a decent dude with a good sense of humor.
But this is 2024, and JD fucking Vance. That was never going to happen.
“Are the Packers playing?”
“Are the Badgers playing?”
“Is hockey on?”
Only for people who take the question too literally. One of my favorite people is sober and I can drink and have fun with them.
The question is about the stereotypical vibe and experiences that happy hours encourage. It’s about being honest, friendly, and relatable. It’s asking how you contribute to that vibe, what makes you a trustworthy person, what makes you you, after you’ve gotten off work and can be yourself.
People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late.
If anything this is a softball question which Vance wiffed.
Again.
He doesn’t seem to answer softball questions very well.
It is kind of a shitty question with no good answer.
Here’s my shot at an answer. No way Vance would ever say this though:
“Honestly? They might not want to. My life is public service and politics, and politics is not the most attractive occupation. Its dealing with policy and compromise. You set high hopes for what you believe you can accomplish for America, but the reality is that you might come away with a fraction of that, at best. However, I’d certainly want to have a beer with them. Washington is far removed from Main street. Those of us in government that get too disconnected forget that our whole job is to make life better for the American people. That doesn’t mean talking at voters. That means listening to them. Understanding the challenges that occur in someone just trying to get through the day and make sure their family is taken care of. Those candid conversations can and do happen over a beer. That conversation with a voter over a beer is the most important event of my day because it guides me in my job to make their lives better.”
You know what? You know what?
I’m willing to give him credit here. This is exactly how I’d respond. Except, I don’t like beer. I vastly prefer weed. Anyone wanna smoke?
Are you inserting yourself into positions where people would ask you that though?
Do you have a team of people working around the clock to feed you answers and tutor you on what to say?
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Idk I’m just a fox
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No
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Granted, most likely, you don’t have media training. He does, or ar least should have media training and be able to give a cogent answer in front of a camera.
I’m not trying to insinuate anything about vance or insult him or anyone else.
That said, that donut shop interaction genuinely felt to me like a reality TV show that attempted to help a neurodivergent person socialize. Like they gave him pointers on smalltalk like asking simple questions about people. He locked in on “how long have you worked here” and interrogated every employee with that single question followed by “OK good.”
I know he can talk, it’s just incredible how bad his interpersonal skills are.
I’m not trying to insinuate anything about vance or insult him or anyone else.
Oh I definitely am. He’s a grown adult and a politician, he absolutely should have the media training to answer a simple question like “Why would a Wisconsinite have a beer with you?”
The easy homerun answer is “Oh there’s a lot of great breweries here in the state! A lot of great choices while having some squeaky cheese curds.” Seriously in 1 sentences I just called out 2 major industries within the state that they’re well known for across the nation, beer brewing and the dairy/cheesemaking industry. Like it’s so braindead easy to do.
I would still respond like this if I ever became famous. My personality is my own. Don’t like it? Don’t put me on camera.
Way ahead of you. (But I do have a legitimate medical reason and I barely feel a high at this point.)
“So, how long have you been drinking beer? Not, like, today. I mean in general. A few years or…?”
That man’s never had a beer in his life!
“You can tell by the way that it is” - Vance probably
the man’s never had a Duff in his life!
Honestly an answer of “Because I like beer.” is not a bad answer. It is the stammering and stumbling to get to that answer and then leaving it at that is a faceplant.
Less than 30 seconds preparing with an internet search would give me a list of breweries on the city he was in that could be referenced as a slam fucking dunk for a campaign. It is probably the most boilerplate GOP campaign question since Dubya.
But this is JD Vance and the Trump campaign we’re talking about. Hah.
I don’t hate it as an answer except in this case where it can be read as “because I’m not like Walz” (who’s teetotal, I think), and “we’re not the other guy” is just so boring.
Or it might be genuinely down to his like of beer, in which case it’s just a bit of a mediocre answer.
“I like to get blackout drunk and fuck (up) a couch” - I’m JD Vance bitch
