Vice President JD Vance had sharp — and joking — words for turkey lovers while speaking to service members ahead of Thanksgiving, making it clear he’s not a fan of the traditional holiday centerpiece.
Addressing troops at Fort Campbell, Ky., on Nov. 26, Vance, 41, challenged the room with a blunt question: “Who really likes — be honest with yourself — who really likes turkey?”
When several service members raised their hands, he fired back playfully, “You’re all full of s—, everybody who raised your hand.”
Vance then explained why he thinks people are overstating their love for the bird.
“Here’s how I know every single one of you who raised your hand is lying to me,” he continued. “How many times do you roast an 18-lbs. turkey, just randomly? Just, you know, a nice summer afternoon, we’re gonna go get an 18-lbs. turkey. Nobody does it, ‘cause turkey doesn’t actually taste that good.”
He joked that “on Thanksgiving, the most American holiday,” people feel obligated to stick with tradition, saying, “we’re gonna cook a turkey, by God, because that’s what Americans do.”
“We cook this gigantic American bird, and we do all kinds of crazy things to make it taste good,” Vance said. He and his wife, Second Lady Usha Vance, were on hand to help serve a Thanksgiving meal to the troops that still included turkey on the menu.
Vance also mentioned a recent conversation with a soldier who told him she was planning to deep-fry her turkey. “I’m actually going to deep fry a turkey myself,” he admitted while still questioning the bird’s appeal. “Here’s the thing: If you’ve got to deep fry something to make it taste good, it probably isn’t that good. That’s a pretty good rule of thumb when it comes to food.”
He made clear his turkey criticism doesn’t extend to all poultry. “Chicken is good all the time,” he said. “Chicken is good when you deep fry it, but it’s also good outside of it.”
After the jokes, Vance shifted to a more serious tone, praising the spirit of the holiday and the service members in front of him. He called Thanksgiving “so American” because “at the heart of it is the spirit of gratitude. And I know that every single one of you has something tomorrow to be very thankful for and to be grateful for.”
