- Sen. JD Vance strongly rejected the idea of not having children over climate change concerns.
- "I think that's a really, really crazy way to think about the world," he told the NYT Magazine.
- Vance said that fatherhood has "totally transformed" how he thinks about himself and his wife.
Ohio Sen. JD Vance, in a newly-published interview, said it's "deranged" and "crazy" for people to reject having children due to concerns over climate change.
Vance, the GOP vice-presidential nominee, made the remarks during a conversation with The New York Times Magazine, where he argued that the United States has "become almost pathologically anti-child."
"You know, when I've used this word sociopathic?" he said. "Like, that, I think, is a very deranged idea: the idea that you shouldn't have a family because of concerns over climate change."
"I think that is a bizarre way of thinking about the future. Not to have kids because of concerns over climate change?" he continued. "I think the more bizarre thing is our leadership, who encourages young women, and frankly young men, to think about it that way."
In the Times interview, Vance spoke of how fatherhood had changed his perspective on life while continuing to blast what he views as a misguided perspective that some have taken regarding parenthood and climate change.
"Bringing life into the world has totally transformed the way that I think about myself, the way that I think about my wife," he said. "And if your political philosophy is saying, don't do that because of concerns over climate change? Yeah, I think that's a really, really crazy way to think about the world."
Over the years, Vance has spoken extensively about raising children from a public policy standpoint. But since joining the GOP ticket, he's also been repeatedly asked to address controversial past statements on the subject — including remarks where he described several Democratic Party officials as "childless cat ladies" who didn't have a stake in the future of the country.