US Vice President JD Vance is being widely mocked after a failed weekend, during which he led fruitless peace talks with Iran and saw the candidate he supported in the Hungarian election, Viktor Orbán, ousted from power after 16 years.
Vance was in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday for 21 hours of talks between American and Iranian negotiators to end the devastating conflict in the Middle East, but they ended without an agreement.
In a press conference afterward, the vice president said the US is not convinced that Iran will give up its long-standing ambition to develop nuclear weapons.
“The simple question is: do we see a real commitment from the Iranians not to develop a nuclear weapon, not just now, not just in two years, but over the long term,” Vance said. “We haven’t seen that yet.”
He insisted that the stalling of talks is "bad news for Iran, much more than it is bad news for the United States of America."
Tehran said two important issues remained unresolved: its nuclear program and control of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world's oil passes.
President Donald Trump reacted with frustration to the failure of the talks and then announced that the US Navy would impose a "blockade" on the strait.
Then, on Sunday, Hungary's authoritarian president lost his reelection bid to challenger Peter Magyar, just days after Vance flew to Budapest to personally support him.
"JD Vance is on a historic streak," quipped anti-MAGA analyst Ron Filipkowski, listing some of the vice president's recent foreign policy failures.
“He campaigned for the AfD in Germany – and they lost. He invited the Pope to come to the US for Trump’s big event – the Pope refused. He led peace negotiations with Iran – they failed miserably. He campaigned in Hungary for Orbán – and he lost.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom joined the criticism, saying:
“JD Vance has proven twice in 48 hours that he is unprepared for this role. Congratulations to the people of Hungary – today democracy, a free press and human rights won. There is hope.”
Sarah Longwell, founder of The Bulwark, also said the weekend had been "quite embarrassing for JD Vance."
The Republicans Against Trump account on the X platform noted that Secretary of State Marco Rubio spent Saturday night watching a UFC fight in Miami with Trump, leaving Vance to deal with the fallout from the failed negotiations in Islamabad alone. “An absolute clown show running the country,” it commented.
The New York Times reported last week that Vance was among the cabinet members who opposed Operation Epic Fury before its launch on February 28, but later pledged support for Trump, even though he warned that the war was a bad idea that could lead to mass casualties and regional chaos.
Although he did not believe in conflict, Vance was sent by Trump to speak on his behalf. The president even joked at the White House last week:
“If the deal doesn’t happen, I’ll blame JD Vance. And if it does, I’ll take all the credit.”
Before arriving in Pakistan, Vance had been in Hungary trying to bolster Orbán's declining campaign, supporting the strongman leader - who is also backed by Vladimir Putin's Russia - and attacking "bureaucrats in Brussels" who oppose his rule.
