US cringeworthy JD Vance

JD Vance’s attempt at a joke about AOC caused levels of tumbleweed previously unseen by human eyes, and her comeback absolutely smoked him

Oonagh Keating. Updated February 20th, 2026

Donald Trump’s inaugural Board of Peace summit was exactly what you’d expect – a ragtag band of largely right-wing governments represented by individuals who were forced to sit (and stand) through almost interminal Trump boasts and tangents.

It very much serves them right for agreeing to be involved with the highly suspect body, which will have Trump as its leader for life – not just for the term of his presidency – and which has given itself the power to become involved in conflicts across the world.

The session saw a proposal of the imposition of a multinational ‘peacekeeping’ force in Gaza, and the allocation of $10 billion of seed money appropriated from US taxpayers without the permission of Congress, with which to begin turning the area into a riviera-style money-making opportunity for property developers, such as Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Trump’s time at the lectern produced his customary string of embarrassing soundbites – like this.

And this glimpse into the obsession.

Almost inevitably, he was caught napping.

Despite all that, it was left to VP JD Vance to provide the most cringeworthy moment of the event, with a presumably improvised attempt at a joke about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

“I didn’t want to repeat our congresswoman who froze for 20 seconds over in Munich. Now I’m tempted, sir, just to freeze for 20 seconds and just stare at the cameras, and maybe they’ll say nice things about me, like they do about Congresswoman Cortez.”

There’s a reason people say nice things about Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez, and it’s not because she stumbled over her words a little before regaining her composure.

The reaction in the room inspired much mockery online. These scathing takedowns perfectly captured the vibe.

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