JD Vance is having a hard time reconciling his 2024 warnings about the United States getting entangled in foreign wars with the reality of the world in 2026. Those contradictions by Vance, 41, have left the Vice President vulnerable to criticism over the Trump administration’s handling of Ameri can troops. After Secretary of War Pete Hesegeth faced backlash for not saluting a black soldier and President Donald Trump got slammed for wearing a baseball cap during the dignified transfer of fallen soldiers, Vance showed exactly why many believe he’s perfectly aligned with this administration. Vice President JD Vance finds himself on the social media hot seat for what some viewers say was a lack of respect for fallen American service members. (Photo: Caylo Seals/Getty Images) ‘It Be Your Own People’: JD Vance Accidentally Posts Embarrassing Pic of Trump Struggling  and Fans Say He Did it On Purpose In particular, Vance, 41, is catching heat over a viral clip of what some viewers call a lack of proper respect for the soldiers who lost their lives in the ongoing conflict taking place in the Middle East. As of this writing, at least six Army Reserve members and one Army soldier have been killed since Trump, 79, ordered military strikes against Iran on Feb. 28. Vance had to reconcile his previous “no new wars” stance with Americans now losing their lives in West Asia as he spoke to the International Association of Fire Fighters on March 9 in Washington, D.C. After opening his speech with jokes about Democrats and praising DC’s weather, Vance turned his attention to calling on the IAFF audience to offer positive thoughts for the deceased troops. View on Threads “I was honored to be able to participate in the dignified transfer of six American soldiers who were killed overseas in this conflict with Iran, and I had never done that before,” Vance stated, referring to the solemn event that took place on March 7 at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. He also said, “If you are the praying type, and I certainly am, I hope you’ll spare a prayer for the six souls that we lost, for the seventh soul who will be coming home tonight, and for all of their families.” Even though Vance did not directly ask the assembled firefighters and emergency medical personnel inside the Hyatt Regency Washington for a formal moment of silence, his remarks could have been interpreted as a call for quiet reflection. The Marine Corps veteran made it clear he did not intend to take more time out of his address to further honor the fallen soldiers by quickly moving on to bragging about Trump’s accomplishments over the past year.  “I hope you’ll share a moment of prayer for our brothers in arms, for your brothers in arms who keep this country safe in their own way, just as you keep the country safe in your particular way,” Vance stated, before adding, “So to move on a little bit, let me just say that what we have tried to do in the Trump administration.” The vice president did not name Maj. Jeffrey O’Brien, Chief Warrant Officer Robert Marzan, Capt. Cody Khork, Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, and Sgt. Declan Coady as the Army Reserve members who were killed in action during an Iranian drone strike in Kuwait on March 1. Sgt. Benjamin Pennington died on March 8 from an attack at the Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. The Army Achievement Medal recipient’s remains were transferred to Dover AFB the following day. Vance was in attendance to receive the flag-draped transfer case. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vice President JD Vance (@vp) Critics of Vance laid into his short, nameless acknowledgement of the lost soldiers, with many social media users expecting he would pause his speech to allow for a longer reflective moment. “He is an embarrassment,” one person declared about Vance in response to footage of his quick recognition of the departed fighters. Another commenter reacted by posting, “He is such a joke, he has no respect from anyone. If he thinks he has even the slightest prayer to become president, he’s crazy too.” “That’s called a half a moment of silence because Trump would crucify him for bringing attention to dead soldiers!” a third poster theorized.  Vance was blasted further when someone on the platform admitted, “The same people I wish would shut the f–k up don’t even know how to do a moment of silence.” ‘He is An Embarrassment’: JD Vance Blows Past a Key Moment in a Rush to Suck Up to Trump — and It Backfires Fast ...read more read less