White House slams ‘fake narrative’ that Vance is absent from Iran strikes amid Operation Epic Fury

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White House officials balked at reporting that Vice President JD Vance had been distant fromOperation Epic Furyas strikes continued from both Iran and U.S.-Israeli forces in the Middle East Tuesday.

Critics have claimed that Vance has intentionally distanced himself from public appearances and potentially negotiations related to U.S.active military engagement in Iran and the Middle East.

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President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office

Officials say Vice President JD Vance has remained actively involved in national security discussions despite criticism that he has kept a low public profile during the Iran strikes.(Alex Wong/Getty Images)

“The vice president and other administration officials conducted multiple media interviews and will continue to do so,” the senior White House official told ABC.“The national security team also held multiple briefing calls with members of the press and key stakeholders after the operation began.”

� “Jesse Watters Primetime” March 2, making him the first Trump administration official outside of PresidentDonald Trump’spre-recorded announcement to speak on live TV about the strikes.The interview was one of nine reported public appearances Vance has made since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury.

During the interview, Vance emphasized the White House’s reasoning behindstriking Iran and addressedthe idea of an unnecessary, elongated war.

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The White House pushed back on reports that Vice President JD Vance has been absent from Operation Epic Fury, calling the narrative false and media driven.(Aaron Schwartz/UPI/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“President Trump will not get the United States into a years-long conflict with no clear objective,” Vance told Watters.

“The vice president hasn’t been keeping a low profile,” a spokesperson for Vice President Vance�“He’s attended two dignified transfers atDover Air Force Base, went on primetime TV after the start of Operation Epic Fury, held a press gaggle and delivered two speeches in which he discussed the heroic sacrifice of America’s service members.”

Dignified transfers at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware took place after American soldiers were killed during the beginning days of the U.S.military operation against Iran.

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Smoke and flames rise at the site of airstrikes March 7 on an oil depot in Tehran, Iran.(Sasan/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Reports have also indicated that Vance has been averse to the idea of a war with Iran and alluded to comments theformer Ohio senatormade about some of the basis for his support for Trump stemming from Trump not having started a war during his first presidential term.

� “America’s Newsroom” for a State of the Union reaction on Feb.25,days before the strikeon Iran, and Vance echoed the president’s condemnation of the Middle Eastern country obtaining nuclear weapons.

“You can’t let the craziest and worst regime in the world have nuclear weapons,” Vance told Hemmer.“That’s what the president is accomplishing.That’s what the president has set as our goal.He’s going to try to accomplish it diplomatically.

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President Donald Trump holds a meeting alongside Vice President JD Vance in the Situation Room June 21, 2025, at the White House in Washington, D.C.(The White House/Handout via Reuters)

“The president has a number of other tools at his disposal to ensure this doesn’t happen,” Vance continued.“He’s shown a willingness to use them, and I hope the Iranians take it seriously in their negotiations tomorrow, because that’s certainly what the president prefers.”

With regard to the status of the ongoing conflict and his involvement with strategy itself, Vance addressed reporters at an event in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Friday, saying negotiations among White House officials are classified but noting he has been involved with discussions.

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“I sit there with [Secretary of War] Pete Hegseth and [Joint Chiefs Air Force] Gen.[Dan] Caine and [Secretary of State]Marco Rubioand the entire White House team, and the president and I and the entire senior team are talking about the options and about what we need to do and about how we must best protect the American people,” Vance told reporters.

“I’m not going to show up here and in front of God and everybody else, tell you exactly what I said in that classified room, partially because I don’t want to go to prison and partially because I think it’s important for the president of the United States to be able to talk to his advisors without those advisors running their mouth to the American media.”

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