For the Vance family, 2025 has been a year marked by dramatic highs and equally dramatic lows. On the surface, it has looked like an exciting time. JD Vance was sworn in as vice president of the United States, a milestone that thrust his entire family further into the national spotlight. The Vances traveled extensively, took luxury trips, and appeared to enjoy the privileges that come with political prominence. Yet beneath the polished public façade, tension simmered. Usha Vance, a former attorney who stepped reluctantly into the role of second lady, increasingly seemed uncomfortable in the spotlight. Her noticeably strained interactions with her husband, some of which were caught publicly, fueled persistent rumors that their marriage was under serious stress. Those whispers only grew louder during the annual White House turkey pardon.
The turkey pardoning ceremony on November 25, an event typically filled with lighthearted jokes and holiday cheer, seemed to have a different tone where the Vances were concerned. While President Donald Trump interacted with the pardoned turkeys—Waddle and Gobble—with his usual theatrical flair, and while JD Vance smiled broadly as he carried their youngest daughter, Mirabel, something appeared distinctly off about the dynamic between him and his wife. Photographs from the event showed Usha standing nearby, but her expression looked distant, fatigued, and decidedly unimpressed by the festivities unfolding around her. Her demeanor contrasted sharply with JD’s cheerful public smile, and the disconnect was impossible to miss.
The images captured a subtle but unmistakable tension. In several of them, JD walked far ahead of Usha, almost as though they were attending the ceremony separately rather than as a united couple. In politics—where even the smallest gestures, glances, or physical distance can shape public perception—these moments stood out starkly. They suggested emotional distance, or at the very least a lack of coordination, something that immediately reignited speculation about the state of their marriage. Many viewers felt that such visible disconnection, especially during a nationally televised event, only intensified the persistent rumors that the couple could be heading toward divorce.
These whispers were nothing new. For months, Usha Vance had appeared visibly strained in her new public life. Clips of her snapping at JD during earlier public appearances had gone viral, interpreted by many as revealing cracks behind the polished political façade. She seemed uncomfortable with the performative aspects of being SLOTUS, and her uneasiness often contrasted with JD’s more practiced public demeanor. So when she appeared at the turkey pardoning looking disengaged and tense, it didn’t take long for the conversation online to erupt again.