Raven-Symoné Questions Why J.D. Vance Felt the Need to Clarify His Sexuality at Campaign Rally: 'No One Asked'

During an episode of The View, guest host Raven-Symoné openly criticized and gave side-eye to Vice President J.D. Vance after his unprompted clarification that he is not gay.

During a campaign stop in Texas for Republican Ken Paxton, a supporter yelled, "I love you," to Vance.

Vance replied that he loved him back, but immediately clarified it was strictly platonic and joking: “I'm the vice president, not James Talarico,” referring to the rising Democratic star and Paxton’s opponent.

Reacting to the clip on The View, the 40-year-old Cosby Show alum noted, “J.D. Vance, no one asked if you were gay. You're literally just saying it out of nowhere, which makes me go, 'Hmm.'”

The hosts pointed out that Talarico, 37, is not gay and has a long-term girlfriend, criticizing Vance and other Republicans for weaponizing terms like "gay" and "vegan" as attempted slurs.

She noted that Vance's attempt to use these terms to insult someone's masculinity is an antiquated way of thinking.

“They keep using vegan, gay as these slurs, when in actuality, Cam Newton is a vegan, and I think he’s super masculine. And hot!” she continued. “Carl Nassib is gay, and he’s super masculine. So you thinking that calling someone gay or vegan de-masculates them is actually a very old, old, old way, which just goes to show you that you’re not up to date, and we have no idea what you’re talking about because it’s just like, you’re trying to set up a joke, a dad joke that did not land very well."

Republicans like Vance have baselessly targeted Talarico’s sexuality as a political talking point to their base.

During a recent campaign stop, Vance, 41, pointed to a 2023 podcast interview where Talarico was asked what he loved in life besides his family. Talarico responded that he loved the transgender children who came to the Texas State Capitol to advocate for their humanity.

At a campaign event, a voter approached Talarico and thanked him for defending drag performers. Vance, who was photographed dressed in drag when he attended Yale University, seized on that comment, accusing Talarico of having a "weird focus on transgender kids and drag queens,” baselessly claiming Talarico "spends so much time talking about 11-year-old drag queens.”

While stumping in Tyler, Tx., Vance took the attack further by telling a crowd, “You gotta wonder what the internet search history of a man like that looks like. Ladies and gentlemen, you don't want to find out.” When reporters later pressed him for evidence, Vance admitted he was "just guessing" but doubled down on the insinuation.

Users explicitly labeled his attacks as "projection," with comments stating "Vance is a closeted gay" and questioning why the GOP is so fixated on accusing opponents of being gay.

It’s worth noting that Vance wrote in his 2016 memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, that he briefly convinced himself he was gay when he was a child.

In the book, Vance recounted a time when he approached his grandmother to confess his fear that he was gay, saying his “Mamaw asked him bluntly, ‘J.D., do you want to suck d---?’”

When a flabbergasted Vance responded, "Of course not," she told him, "Then you're not gay.”