Vance’s former friend calls trans college admission comments ‘outrageous’

Sofia Nelson, a former friend of Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) from Yale Law School, on Thursday called the vice-presidential nominee’s suggestion that transgender individuals are identifying as such to make themselves more marketable to elite colleges and universities “outrageous” and “offensive.” 

Vance made the remark during a 3-hour interview with podcast host Joe Rogan, during which the two men also criticized allowing transgender athletes to participate in women’s sports and questioned scientific evidence supporting gender-affirming health care. At one point, Vance said he expects himself and former President Trump to win “the normal gay guy vote.” 

“I think the MAGA movement thinks of minority identities as something we take on and off like a jacket,” Nelson, who is transgender, told CNN’s Laura Coates late Thursday after the podcast episode aired. “The only advantage that's flown to me from being transgender is that I get to live my authentic self, which I think is, you know, what all trans people are seeking.” 

“The reality for trans people in America is that we’re four times more likely to be the victims of violent crime,” Nelson said, referring to a 2021 analysis of federal crime victimization numbers. “There's no evidence to support what he's saying, and I think it's part of this nefarious, calculated plot to divide us and to sow division amongst the American people, and that's why you see that they spent $100 million running ads attacking me and my community.” 

Trump and Vance have made anti-transgender messaging a central part of their campaign’s closing argument, spending tens of millions of dollars on advertising that paints the Democratic ticket of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as extreme for their past support of trans-inclusive policies. At rallies, Trump frequently rails against what he calls “transgender insanity” and has pledged on multiple occasions to ban trans women and girls from female sports teams as president. 

The former president has also made remarks disparaging the LGBTQ community more broadly, and last week referred several times to CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, who is gay, as “Allison Cooper.” 

“Trans people just want to be left alone to be able to live our lives,” Nelson said Thursday. “I'm not bothering anyone. I'm not making it difficult for any, quote, normal person to live their life, and I wish that we could get back to a place of respectful, curious dialog and not attacks.” 

“I do miss JD and Usha. I don’t wish anything ill on them,” Nelson added. “I care about them as people, but the political messenger that he's become, I think, is incredibly dangerous, and I encourage everyone, whether trans or not, to think about, ‘What do these types of attacks from our leaders mean for us as a country?’ and, ‘What kind of message does it send our children about bullying?’ These are not the ways we would want our kids to talk about people who are different from us. It's certainly not the way we want our leaders to talk about it.” 

Vance touched on his former friendship with Nelson while appearing on Rogan’s podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience.” Nelson, he said, “kind of flipped out on me” when Vance came out in opposition to gender-affirming care for trans youths while campaigning for the Senate in 2022. Vance is the primary sponsor of a Senate bill that aims to make it a felony crime to provide transition-related care to minors.

Nelson shared about 90 emails and text messages between themself and Vance, primarily from 2014 through 2017, with the New York Times in July. Vance in the exchanges describes Trump as a “morally reprehensible human being” and expresses his support for Nelson’s gender identity. He and his wife, Usha, brought Nelson homemade baked goods after Nelson underwent surgery related to their transition. 

“What I’ve seen is a chameleon, someone who is able to change their positions and their values depending on what will amass them political power and wealth,” Nelson told CNN’s Erin Burnett in July. “And I think that’s really unfortunate, because it reflects a lack of integrity.”