Joy Reid hits back at JD Vance for 'wasting time' trolling her amid govt shutdown

WASHINGTON, DC: Former MSNBC anchor Joy Reid has publicly criticized Vice President JD Vance for engaging in what she called “Twitter trolling” amid the ongoing Republican-led government shutdown.

Reid expressed disbelief that the vice president would focus on responding to her remarks rather than addressing pressing national issues, including the shutdown and economic turmoil.

Joy Reid responds to JD Vance’s tweet

Joy Reid took to her Substack on Thursday to respond to JD Vance’s tweet in which he shared a clip of Reid discussing her family’s experience with racism in the US, writing, “My honest, non-trolling advice to Joy Reid is that you’d be a much happier person if you showed a little gratitude.”

In her post, Reid expressed shock that Vance, as vice president, would devote time to her comments instead of governing.

“I have to admit, I am surprised that the vice president of the United States has so much time on his hands that he’s scrolling old interviews of mine,” she wrote. “Tweet less and govern more, James David; you are wasting our time and tax money.”

Joy Reid points to broader crises amid government shutdown

Joy Reid highlighted several ongoing issues, including the government shutdown, rising unemployment, and economic disruptions caused by Trump-era policies. “We are, after all, just one day into a Republican government shutdown, Trump’s disastrous tariffs are wreaking hell on our economy, likely prompting yet another Trump bailout of the farmers who largely voted for him and those tariffs too,” she wrote.

She also criticized the administration’s leadership over public health and the military. “Our health agencies are in the shaky hands of a former heroin addict/vaccine truther and a TV doctor from Oprah’s former show. And the former weekend TV host in charge of our military just forced our entire military leadership to watch him do a creepy, manosphere TED Talk,” Reid added.

Background on JD Vance and Joy Reid's exchange

The feud stems from an earlier Vance response to Reid’s comments that he may have benefitted from affirmative action when he got into Yale. Reid had remarked on Don Lemon’s show on Sept 24, “Maybe the way JD Vance got into Yale is because they were tired of just letting in white men from New York from Choate, from all the elite schools. They wanted an Appalachian white. That’s how that man got into Yale, I promise you. That’s also affirmative action and DEI.”

Vance responded by posting a meme of himself bald with a bloated face. On Thursday, he reiterated that Reid should show gratitude, prompting her lengthy Substack response.