JD Vance faced an unfortunate situation in his debut TikTok post where he promoted an appearance on the “Nelk Boys” podcast, filmed in a room with several white couches. This setting unintentionally invoked viral memes about a baseless and bizarre rumor concerning a sexual incident involving a couch and Donald Trump’s running mate.
Despite the Associated Press retracting their fact-check on the rumor, the meme’s influence persisted, casting a shadow over Vance’s introduction to the platform.
The video, posted on Thursday, was Vance’s first under his verified TikTok account and quickly garnered significant attention, mostly negative. The majority of the comments mocked him with references to the “couch-f***er energy,” a phrase popularized by John Oliver. This comment theme dominated the discourse, undermining Vance’s attempt to establish a serious presence on social media.
JD Vance
Among the comments, the most popular ones included jabs like “JD Vance just eyeing those new couches,” reflecting his past “never-Trump” stance, and other derogatory remarks suggesting it was risky to allow him near furniture. These comments received hundreds of likes, highlighting the challenge Vance faces in shaking off these memes and moving the conversation toward his political agenda.
Vance’s awkward joke at a rally about his wife making him sleep on the couch didn’t help his case, reinforcing the odd and unfavorable image that his critics are eager to project. His campaign has had to spend significant effort rebutting the Harris campaign’s portrayal of him and Trump as “weird,” an image that the viral couch comments further entrench.
Despite the attention, Vance’s engagement metrics were underwhelming. His first post received less than 120,000 likes in over 24 hours, significantly trailing behind Kamala Harris’ campaign account, “Kamala HQ,” which earned over 150,000 likes for a post mocking Vance.
Additionally, Vance gained just under 70,000 followers on his first day, a stark contrast to Harris’ 1.6 million followers in her initial 16 hours and Trump’s 3 million on his first day, illustrating a significant disparity in social media impact.
