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Vance stirs row with remark on Hindu wife Usha's faith: What did the US vice president really say?
US vice president JD Vance’s remarks led to a controversy, as people accused Vance of insensitivity toward his wife's Hindu identity.
A massive controversy has erupted over US vice president JD Vance’s remarks regarding his Hindu wife, Usha Vance, in which he said he hoped she would embrace Christianity one day. After the backlash, Vance clarified that his wife has no plans to convert and that he respects her decision.
JD Vance made the initial remarks at a Turning Point USA event on Wednesday at the University of Mississippi. A young woman, believed to be of South Asian descent, had questioned him about his faith, his inter-religious marriage to Usha, and the Trump administration’s policies on immigration.
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JD Vance’s remarks that led to controversy
While responding to her, Vance said that Usha goes to church with him on most Sundays. However, what he said afterwards sparked a row.
“As I've told her, and I've said publicly, and I'll say now in front of 10,000 of my closest friends, do I hope eventually that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved by in church? Yeah, I honestly do wish that, because I believe in the Christian gospel, and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way,” he said.
Vance added, “But if she doesn't, then God says everybody has free will, and so that doesn't cause a problem for me. That's something you work out with your friends, with your family, with the person that you love.”
In his answer, Vance also disclosed that he and Usha had decided to raise their three children as Christians, and that they even attend a Christian school.
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Vance clarifies after backlash
The US vice president’s remarks led to a controversy, as people accused Vance of insensitivity toward his wife's Hindu identity and described his words as an example of religious entitlement.
A few days after the row, Vance addressed the controversy directly on X and clarified that Usha has no plans to convert and that he respects her decision.
“She is not a Christian and has no plans to convert, but like many people in an interfaith marriage - or any interfaith relationship - I hope she may one day see things as I do. Regardless, I'll continue to love and support her and talk to her about faith and life and everything else, because she's my wife,” he said.
