Vice President JD Vance found himself confronting past social media commentary this week as his 2021 tweets about the Jeffrey Epstein scandal resurfaced at an politically inconvenient moment.
Timing Proves Awkward for Vice President
The renewed attention to Vance's old posts came just as Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three explosive emails from Epstein that suggest former President Donald Trump's awareness of Epstein's criminal activities. The timing created an uncomfortable situation for the vice president, whose previous comments about the case suddenly gained fresh relevance.
CNN journalist Andrew Kaczynski brought Vance's 2021 tweets back into public view shortly after the Epstein emails became public. The tweets show Vance had been deeply engaged with the Epstein case years before becoming vice president.
Vance's 2021 Epstein Commentary
In one September 2021 post, Vance referenced a 2019 column from The Week titled "The Jeffrey Epstein case is why people believe in Pizzagate" that he claimed to think about "about once a month." The article specifically examined whether Trump was speaking from personal experience when he commented in 2002 that Epstein "likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side."
Vance followed up with another tweet that same day expressing bewilderment about how the scandal had seemingly been forgotten. "Remember when we learned that our wealthiest and most powerful people were connected to a guy who ran a literal child sex trafficking ring?" Vance wrote. "And then that guy died mysteriously in a jail? And now we just don't talk about it."
December 2021 Tweet Gains New Significance
Kaczynski also highlighted a third Vance tweet from December 2021 that has taken on additional meaning in 2025. "What possible interest would the US government have in keeping Epstein's clients secret? Oh..." Vance had asked rhetorically.
This particular comment appears especially relevant now, given that Trump allies have been stalling on releasing Epstein-related files despite previous commitments to transparency. The resurfaced tweets collectively paint a picture of Vance as previously skeptical about how the Epstein case was handled and curious about what powerful figures might be protected from scrutiny.
The situation presents a challenge for the vice president, who must now navigate the disconnect between his past commentary and his current position in an administration connected to the very figures mentioned in the newly revealed Epstein emails.
