Vance Takes Tough Questions at Michigan Town Hall on Gas Prices, Corruption and Immigration

Vice President JD Vance spent Saturday fielding questions from Michigan voters, in a state that could decide control of the Senate. The town hall in Flat Rock was hosted by CBS News and recorded ahead of the midterms. Fox News listed the main moments.

Gas prices came first. A Detroit barber asked why they remain well above first-term levels. Vance pointed to Iran's attacks on commercial shipping, then to the last administration: "when Joe Biden was president, we had about 20% of American refining capacity that went offline." He said the Defense Production Act is being used to help bring refining back, but that it will take time. CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil noted that Trump and Vance have been in office nearly two years.

Dokoupil then asked about corruption, citing a Fox News poll in which 60% of voters said they were extremely concerned about it. Vance said he sees evidence of it in Washington but not from the president or the administration. The question followed the resignation of Kimberly Guilfoyle as ambassador to Greece amid allegations that she sought $100,000 from a donor who wanted access to administration officials. Guilfoyle denies wrongdoing. Vance called selling access "disgusting and despicable." Asked whether he would comply with subpoenas if Democrats win Congress, he said: "Of course, of course I will."

On immigration, a naturalized citizen who said she voted for Vance asked why the administration was "scapegoating immigrants," and pressed him on calling some H-1B workers "foreign indentured servants." Vance said "to the extent that my rhetoric has been imperfect here, that's on me," but argued his target is companies that sometimes lay off Americans to hire visa holders, not the workers. He also said his goal is not to dehumanize anyone, and that wanting to share a community with people who have something in common with you is not unreasonable.

On Iran, Dokoupil asked why the U.S. has not won decisively. Vance said the nuclear program has been destroyed, and that the administration is now seeking a "long-term" and "verifiable" commitment that it will not be rebuilt. He claimed gas would cost "three times as high" without the Navy protecting shipping.

A voter whose children survived the March attack on Temple Israel asked Vance to condemn antisemitism in his own political base. "I condemn anti-Semitism. I condemn Jew hatred," Vance answered, then criticized Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed for saying "hurt people hurt people" after the attack. Fox notes El-Sayed condemned the attack and apologized for his wording.

After the taping, Vance posted on X about the riots in France, calling them a cautionary tale for the United States.