While holding a virtual rally on election day, Donald Trump let slip a possible barb at his running mate, JD Vance. In a call to action meant to inspire his base, Trump said, “I would very much appreciate if you would … get off that beautiful couch or wherever you might be sitting right now and just go out and vote,” (via CNN). Whereas this sounds like usual Trump dialogue, it could be a subtle dig at a pernicious — but debunked — rumor revolving around a joke about vice presidential candidate JD Vance’s amorous interactions with a couch. Plus, this isn’t even the first time Trump has used this wording on the campaign trail.
On October 19, 2024, the evening before early voting could begin in the battleground state of Michigan, presidential candidate Donald Trump held a rally in Detroit. During the speech, Trump tried to reason with the women in the room — a demographic he struggles with — by urging them to convince their husbands to get “off the couch, get that fat pig off the couch … Tell him to go and vote for Trump.” (Per Huffington Post).
The oft-derided senator from Ohio has had to withstand much lambasting of his career, his memoir, his relationship, and his possible fondness for couches. Though there is no proof that Vance is a couch deviant, it is interesting that Trump would use this type of language to encourage his supporters, especially since his Democratic rivals are co-opting the same language to rile up their base.
The Harris campaign loves poking at the couch rumor
Speaking of vice presidential picks, when Kamala Harris announced Tim Walz would be her running mate, Walz made sure to leave a memorable impression. Taking the stage in Philadelphia on August 6, Walz greeted the crowd of supporters by saying, “I got to tell you, I can’t wait to debate [Vance]. That is, if he’s willing to get off the couch and show up.” It’s almost a word-for-word inspiration of what Trump would later say in October and on Election Day. However, this was not a flub, it was very pointed and supposed to get directly under Vance’s skin.
A video of this moment with Walz feeling pleased with himself and his wordplay has been viewed on TikTok over 5 million times. Although it might feel fun to poke at the opposing team while running a campaign, it is always good due diligence to remind listeners and supporters when a claim is false or has been debunked, something Harris HQ has yet to do.
