Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is facing heavy criticism from both Republican figures and social media users for implying that the marriage of US Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, is troubled.
The backlash was led by a senior Trump official, Steven Cheung, the White House Director of Communications, who harshly criticized Psaki on X (formerly Twitter). Cheung, using crude language and misspelling her name, wrote:
“Jen Psuki must be transferring her own personal issues onto others. @jrpsaki is a dumba** who has no comprehension of the truth and has to overcompensate for her lack of talent by saying untrue things. Circle back on that, moron.”
Psaki’s Unsubstantiated Remarks
Psaki, currently an MSNBC host, made the contentious remarks while appearing on the “I’ve Had It” podcast, suggesting that the Second Lady, Usha Vance (a lawyer of Indian descent), might be seeking a divorce, despite Usha making no public statement to that effect.
“I always wonder what’s going on in the mind of his wife,” Psaki stated. “Like, are you OK? Please blink four times. Come over here, we’ll save you.”
Psaki also used the opportunity to attack JD Vance’s political ambitions, calling him “the little Manchurian candidate” and claiming he “wants to be president more than anything else.” She further labeled him as “scarier in certain ways” than Trump, criticizing him as a “chameleon who makes himself into whatever he thinks the audience wants to hear from him.”
The baseless comments drew swift criticism online, with one user noting, “His wife comes off incredibly happy—Jen is a mean girl and thinks that makes her special.” Conservative accounts also called on MSNBC to address her remarks.