: Vice President J.D. Vance took the stage at Hatch Stamping in Howell at approximatley 1:50 p.m. LIVINGSTON COUNTY, MI - The last time Gabriel Wiechert saw Vice President J.D. Vance in Michigan, it was at a Grand Rapids rally the week after the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump.

The vice president pledged in February at the Munich Security Conference to “defend your right” to publicly share opposing views.

Andrew Bates, President Biden's former deputy press secretary, told Jessica Tarlov's "Raging Moderates" podcast that Vice President J.D. Vance's furious response Monday to the assassination of Charlie Kirk disqualifies him from ever being a unifying figure as a 2028 candidate.

Vice President JD Vance delivers a speech to scores of people at Hatch Stamping in Howell, Michigan, on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. Vance took the stage around 1:50 p.m. and spoke for around 20 minutes. Vance spoke about the economy while promoting of the “Big Beautiful Bill.” (Devin Anderson-Torrez | MLive.com)

Last week, Erika Kirk flew back from Utah to Arizona with her husband’s casket on Air Force Two. She was accompanied by Vice President JD Vance. Charlie Kirk and Vance shared a close friendship, as the vice president and Kirk’s inner circle have expressed since the assassination.

JD Vance sat down with Fox News host Jesse Watters to discuss the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University last week. Tyler Robinson, 22, has been charged for the murder of Kirk,

News of the conservative activist's death landed particularly hard on Vance, who changed his plans Thursday to fly to Utah and return Kirk's remains to Arizona on Air Force Two.

A former Biden administration official is pouring cold water on Vice President JD Vance’s future aspirations after warning that comments he made this week while hosting the “Charlie Kirk Show” could come back to haunt him in a potential 2028 presidential bid.