Vice President Vance sparked laughter at a White House press conference when he joked that press secretary Carolyn Leavitt should temporarily take over for his wife, Usha Vance, when she gives birth to a baby later this year.
The relaxed exchange took place on Tuesday, when Vance replaced Levitt in the White House briefing room while she was still on maternity leave after giving birth to her second child earlier this month.
What did JD Vance say?
Political commentator Eric Daugherty shared the video on X and jokingly wrote that Vance agreed to serve as press secretary “on one condition.”
Vance began the conference by praising Leavitt and wishing her a good time with her family.
“It’s so cool to be here. Of course, I want to give a shout out to the person I’m replacing today, Carolyn Leavitt, who wishes she could be home and enjoy some quality time with her beautiful kids,” Vance said.
He then joked that he had struck a deal with Leavitt before agreeing to take over briefing duties.
“I told Caroline that I would be taking her place at the White House press briefing today on the condition that when Usha gives birth to our baby in July, she will serve as vice president for a few weeks,” Vance said, drawing laughter from the room.
Caroline Levitt welcomes second child
According to the “American Sun” report, Levitt gave birth to daughter Viviana on May 1. “She’s here and she’s perfect,” she wrote on Instagram when announcing the news.
Levitt, 28, and her husband Nicholas Riccio also have a son, Niko, born in July 2024.
The outlet reported that Levitt delayed the start of her maternity leave and officially resigned in late April after an attempted attack on President Donald Trump during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
She also made history as the first current White House press secretary to become pregnant while in office.
Usha Vance expecting fourth child
Meanwhile, Vance and Usha announced in January that they were expecting their fourth child, another baby boy, due in late July, The Sun reported.
The couple already has three children: Ewan, Vivek and Mirabel.
Earlier this year, Usha spoke to NBC News about balancing pregnancy with her public role as second lady. “I wore a lot of sweatpants during my last pregnancy,” she said. “I was working from home.”
