JD Vance jokes about having 'PTSD' from missing Trump's VP nomination call

WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President JD Vance had the crowd cracking up in Milwaukee as he shared the story of almost missing a life-changing call from President Donald Trump. He explained how campaign manager Susie Wiles texted him about the missed call, all while his seven-year-old son was trying to talk his ear off about Pokemon cards.  

Vance told the story at the Pfister Hotel, the same place where he’d shown up for the 2024 Republican National Convention, still uncertain if Trump would actually pick him as running mate. Just walking through the lobby brought all those nerves rushing back. He joked it felt like a little bit of "PTSD" kicking in.

JD Vance recalls text that nearly stopped his heart

"I get a phone call, actually, it was a text message from Susie Wiles, who was the campaign manager in 2024," Vance told the crowd.

"And the text message says, 'JD, you just missed a very important phone call.' I'm like, oh, no." Vance said he immediately called Trump to explain. "I call the President of the United States and I say, 'Sir, I hear I missed an important phone call,'" he recounted. "And he said, 'JD, you did miss a very important phone call. And now I'm gonna have to pick somebody else.'"

The crowd laughed as Vance described what happened next inside his own body. "My entire body clenches up. I'm like, 'Is this real?'" he said.

JD Vance's son interrupted with Pokemon cards at the critical moment

Making the moment even more chaotic, Vance said his son, then seven years old, chose precisely that moment to demand his father's attention on a far less consequential matter.

"At the same time, my seven-year-old, who's now nine, but at the time my seven-year-old boy is talking to me about Pokémon cards," Vance said to laughter.

"So I'm trying to talk to the President of the United States about becoming the Vice Presidential nominee, and meanwhile my seven-year-old is talking to me about Charmander cards. I have no idea what's going on."

Vance did not explain to the crowd what Trump's prank-like comment was ultimately followed by, but his presence on stage as the sitting Vice President of the United States made the punchline self-evident.

JD Vance says it 'worked out'

Reflecting on the memory as he stood in the same hotel where it had all played out two years earlier, Vance said the moment has stuck with him.

"Walking through the Pfister Hotel, I've got this moment of remembrance of the moment where I almost missed the president's phone call," he said. "But here I am. It worked out. I'm the Vice President of the United States. Thanks to you."

Vance was formally nominated as Trump's running mate during the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, going on to win the election alongside Trump in November of that year before being sworn in as the 50th Vice President of the United States in January 2025.