JD Vance superimposed over map of Iran

Molly Butler / Media Matters

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“Weak” and “disgusting”: Right-wing media revolt against JD Vance over Iran negotiations

As Vance’s diplomatic efforts drag on, some in conservative media are declaring they have “never seen a weaker look from a Republican politician”

Written by Noah VanDowe & Gideon Taaffe

Published

Right-wing media supporters of the Iran war have suggested the current memorandum of understanding is a “disaster” and serves as evidence that Vice President JD Vance “wasn’t the right person to bring this conflict to an end.”

Vance further fueled these complaints with a June 18 press conference in which he claimed members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet had been overly critical of President Donald Trump, warning them to not attack “the only powerful ally” they have left “in the entire world.” Some commentators called the remarks “disgusting” and lamented “the complete Tucker Carlsonificiation of the vice president of the United States,” accusing Vance of messaging “in ways that would make jihadists proud.”

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  • JD Vance became the face of Trump’s Iran policy as he headed negotiations

    • Vance’s ongoing negotiations with Iran to end the war have faced bipartisan criticism because the deal unfreezes Iranian assets. Former UN Ambassador Susan Rice called the MOU a “jaw-dropping, horrific surrender” and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) commented, “History demonstrates that giving billions of dollars to theocratic lunatics who want to murder us is an exceptionally bad idea.” Trump also undercut Vance’s efforts at negotiation by threatening to resume attacks on social media. [The Guardian, 6/21/26; The New York Times, 6/22/26]
    • Following criticism of the deal from Israeli officials, Vance admonished them to “wake up and smell the reality of the situation” Israel is in. Vance said, “Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time, and he happens to be the head of state of the world's superpower. If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.” [Axios, 6/18/26]
    • Right-wing media also put space between Trump and the Iran deal as details about the MOU emerged, suggesting it is “JD’s deal” and “not the president’s deal.” Fox News host Brian Kilmeade claimed, “This is his [Vance’s] deal. It's not the president's deal,” adding, “And it's his deal and Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner together. I just hope they didn't let the president down. Because the president is putting a lot of stock in them. He can't do everything himself.” [Media Matters, 6/17/26]

  • Right-wing media figures have attacked Vance as a “disaster” on Iran and slammed his “disgusting” comments on Israel

    • Daily Wire host Ben Shapiro repeatedly attacked Vance, calling him “weak” and the MOU a “disaster.” On his show, Shapiro distanced Trump from the Iran deal, saying, “This is JD's deal. Let's be very clear. This is the vice president's deal. It does not have support.” Later on Fox News, Shapiro said the MOU is “a disaster that does not achieve any of the actual signal goals that were set by the administration at the beginning,” adding that Vance, “the chief negotiator on this particular project, has not well served the president.” Shapiro also slammed Vance’s presence at negotiations in an op-ed for The Daily Wire, saying he “spent the weekend looking weak in front of the Qataris, the Pakistanis, and most of all, the Iranians. I’ve never seen a weaker look from a Republican politician.” [The Daily Wire, The Ben Shapiro Show, 6/16/26; Fox News, The Story with Martha MacCallum, 6/17/26; The Daily Wire, 6/22/26]
    • Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade suggested Vance “wasn’t the right person to bring this conflict to an end” and called his critiques of Israel “ridiculous” and “detrimental to our relationship with our No. 1 ally.” Kilmeade said of Vance, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, “I just hope they didn't let the president down. Because the president is putting a lot of stock in them.” In a later interview with Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT), Kilmeade asked, “How much better would you feel if Marco Rubio was in that room as opposed to or with the vice president of the United States?” Kilmeade also bristled at Vance’s remarks on Israel, saying, “Have you heard of the Abraham Accords? Do you understand that the Gulf states are tighter with Israel than ever before?” [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 6/17/26, 6/17/26, 6/22/26, 6/22/26]
    • NewsNation host Batya Ungar-Sargon slammed Vance’s criticism of Israel as “disgusting” and “the complete Tucker Carlsonificiation of the vice president of the United States.” Ungar-Sargon continued, “The only good thing I can say about it is if this was a dry run for Vance 2028, we sure learned a lot.” [The New Republic, 6/19/26]
    • On his radio show, Fox host Mark Levin called Vance’s remarks on Israel “way over the top” adding, “What was said about them and our relationship was very inappropriate.” Levin claimed he could not find evidence of the Israeli Cabinet attacking Trump as Vance argued and said, “If you’re going to say it as vice president then you need to have the receipts, and if not, you need to apologize.” [Westwood One, The Mark Levin Show, 6/18/26]
    • The New York Post published multiple editorials and op-eds that criticized Vance and the MOU, with one columnist saying the vice president’s comments on Israel “would make jihadists proud.” The editorial board claimed on June 15 that Vance is someone who cares “more about the stock market and online optics than Iran’s threat to the world,” adding on June 16 that Vance’s “sales pitch for the Iran deal is simply terrible.” A June 19 op-ed argued Vance “has been trying to convince Trump that MAGA is definitely dumb enough to be suckered into believing that the Iran deal his loyal deputy has captained is a historic win.” Another New York Post columnist attacked Vance’s comments on Israel, writing Vance “talks in ways that would make jihadists proud.” [New York Post, 6/15/26, 6/16/26, 6/19/26, 6/20/26]
    • PBD Podcast panelist Adam Sosnick: “Of all the things that JD Vance is great at, I would not put foreign policy anywhere near the top of the list.” Sosnick insisted it was “not true” that “nobody has Israel’s back” outside of the U.S. as Vance claimed, adding that “Modi was just there — India — they have a very strong relationship,” and Israel also has “a very good relationship with UAE.” [YouTube, PBD Podcast, 6/19/26]