Americans with Civil War ancestors have greater claim to US, Vance says

In yet another controversial take, Vice President J.D. Vance recently argued that Americans whose ancestors fought in the Civil War have “a hell of a lot more claim over America” than those who question their belonging.

What he said: Speaking at the conservative think tank Claremont Institute’s Statesmanship Award Dinner in San Diego last weekend, Vance rejected what he termed “the logic of America as a purely creedal nation,” contending that defining citizenship solely through agreement with founding principles is both “over-inclusive and under-inclusive.” He argued this approach would theoretically include “hundreds of millions, maybe billions of foreign citizens who agree with the principles of the Declaration of Independence,” while simultaneously rejecting Americans “that the ADL (Anti-Defamation League) would label as domestic extremists, even though those very Americans had their ancestors fight in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War.”

“I think the people whose ancestors fought in the Civil War have a hell of a lot more claim over America than the people who say they don’t belong,” he concluded.

Making an example: The vice president specifically targeted New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, whose family fled Uganda when dictator Idi Amin ethnically cleansed the nation’s Indian population, criticizing his July 4th social media post describing America as “beautiful, contradictory, unfinished.” In his speech reflecting on Independence Day, Vance questioned whether the 33-year-old democratic socialist had “ever read the letters from boy soldiers in the Union Army to parents and sweethearts that they’d never see again.” Vance also accused Mamdani of showing a lack of gratitude, saying, “Who the hell does he think that he is?”

Zoom out: Vance’s comments reflect the Trump administration’s immigration approach, with Congress recently providing an additional $170 billion for enforcement measures. The Claremont Institute, which hosted the event, has long pushed for ending birthright citizenship and has been described as a “nerve center” for MAGA immigration thought. The organization honored Vance with its Statesmanship Award, with Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk serving as master of ceremonies, joining past recipients including Ronald Reagan and Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.