Podcaster and former Bravo reality star Jennifer Welch didn’t hold back in a recent episode of her show I’ve Had It, calling U.S. Vice President JD Vance a “failed drag queen” while discussing an alleged photo of the conservative politician dressed in women’s clothing during his college years.
The comment comes as speculation continues to swirl around a viral image that resurfaced during the 2024 presidential campaign, when Vance was running alongside Donald Trump on the Republican ticket. The photo, reportedly taken at Yale University in 2012, appears to show someone resembling Vance wearing a blonde wig, a skirt, and heavy eyeliner, a far cry from the anti-LGBTQ+ positions he has become known for in public life.
Vance has repeatedly refused to confirm whether the image is authentic, brushing off questions about its origin. However, that hasn’t stopped critics and social media users from sharing the picture widely, often highlighting the irony of a man who has openly supported restrictions on drag performances and LGBTQ+ rights possibly being photographed in drag himself.
During her podcast, Welch, known for her sharp humor and unapologetic political takes, didn’t mince words. “He is a failed drag queen,” she said. “He wanted to be a drag queen. He couldn’t do it. He wasn’t fabulous enough. He goes off to Peter Thiel’s gay boot camp in Silicon Valley and comes out like a sociopathic, queer-eyed freak show. You know, he’d be so much cooler if he’d just come out.”
Welch, who co-hosts I’ve Had It with Angie “Pumps” Sullivan, was joined by Pod Save America host Tommy Vietor for the episode. She went on to share her broader theory about what she calls “DL demon queens” within the MAGA movement, men who she claims are secretly queer but publicly champion anti-LGBTQ+ and Christian nationalist policies.
“I have this whole theory, Tommy, that in the MAGA movement there’s a group of DL demon queens,” Welch said. “I think a lot of them are mad that they can’t come out and feel pride. So they browbeat everybody all day long, then they get on Grindr at night, and then they go do gay stuff and wake up pretending to be straight again.”
Vietor agreed with Welch’s assessment, saying, “There are so many people who are repressing something and then acting out in ways that are evil and cruel toward the parts of themselves they hate. You just see that over and over again.”
Welch, who has long been outspoken about hypocrisy in politics and religion, added that her perspective comes from growing up in a conservative environment. “I grew up in a red state around all these evangelicals,” she said. “And they think s**t like this.”
The exchange quickly spread online, with fans praising Welch’s no-holds-barred critique and her willingness to challenge political figures who target the LGBTQ+ community. For many listeners, her comments struck a chord in a political era where drag and queer expression have become lightning rods for controversy, and where the loudest critics of queer culture are often accused of hiding secrets of their own.
