Vance Jokes Daughter Raised a Democrat Over Toy Donation

Vice President JD Vance joked at a campaign rally in Rome, New York, that his four-year-old daughter had raised a Democrat after she chose two of her brothers’ toys for a Toys for Tots donation. He recounted asking her to select toys to give away, then characterized her choice as taking her brothers’ belongings to give to someone else. The remark came during a rally for Republican Anthony Constantino, who was running for New York’s 21st Congressional District. Vance’s anecdote drew laughter from the crowd. The rally was held on the eve of the midterm elections, as Vance campaigned for Republican candidates. Vance also attacked Constantino’s Democratic opponent, farmer Blake Gendebien, over comments about local workers. Vance quoted Gendebien as saying that children in the North Country lacked practical independence and the ability to think, then used a profane insult to describe him. Gendebien’s earlier remarks, as recounted in reports about a 2013 interview, compared Hispanic workers favorably with local children; Vance’s version at the rally did not include that comparison. After the insult, Vance apologized to parents in the audience and told children not to speak like him....