Vance jokes about Biden over stair stumble at Naval Station: ‘He fell up or down the stairs'

VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA: JD Vance set out to keep his remarks nonpartisan, but the “devil on his shoulder” compelled him to crack a joke about former President Joe Biden.

The 41-year-old Vice President was speaking at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach on Wednesday, July 01, when he attempted to get some chuckles from troops with jokes about Biden’s struggles with walking down the stairs.

JD Vance reveals the fear in his mind

The Vice President started his remarks with "It's amazing to be here," before revealing what was really on his mind.

"You know what I'm thinking as I'm coming down the steps is don't fall and bust your *** in front of all of you and in front of all these cameras, because they would never let me live that one down," he said.

Vance then turned to "the previous president," admitting he was wrestling with whether to keep politics out of his remarks.

"I'm trying to be nonpartisan," he said, before joking that he had "an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other" urging him in opposite directions.

"You ever seen these old cartoons where you have the angel on the shoulder and the devil on the shoulder?" Vance asked, before explaining, "I've got the angel on my shoulder saying, 'JD, don't be partisan'. We're going to make this nonpartisan."

"And then I've got the devil on my shoulder who wants to talk about every time that Joe Biden fell up or down the stairs. And the media didn't care about that. But if I did it one time, if I did it one time, it would be a major, major story,” he continued.

Biden's struggles on stairs became a recurring talking point during his presidency. In 2021, he stumbled multiple times while climbing the steps of Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

Two years later, he fell onstage during the US Air Force Academy graduation ceremony, later explaining that he had tripped over a sandbag left on the stage.

Vance vows the military deserves 'a defined mission'

Vance addressed more than 200 sailors and Marines gathered in an aircraft hangar alongside Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins and Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va, as part of events commemorating America's 250th anniversary.

“For 250 years, it is people like you who put on the uniform of the United States of America and made sure that our Constitution actually has meaning,” Vance said.

“Because of you, my friends, the next 250 years of the United States of America are gonna be better than the last 250 years,” he continued.

Drawing on his experience as a Marine Corps veteran, Vance said US troops have at times been sent into combat without a clearly defined mission.

He praised President Donald Trump for, in his view, giving service members clear military objectives and "the weapons to win" during his second term.