Vice President JD Vance has described a recent experience in Los Angeles that he said reminded him of visiting the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Vance shared the observation during a conversation with podcaster Joe Rogan, discussing his perceptions of California's decline.
Vance recounted driving through a rough neighborhood in Los Angeles en route to an elite Christmas party. He noted a stark contrast between the squalor he witnessed and the affluence of the event. "And I realized when I was there, you know what this reminds me of? This reminds me of going to the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti," Vance stated. "Like super security, crazy wealth and privilege and status on the inside, and squalor and misery on the outside."
He added that this moment led him to believe that parts of America were beginning to resemble a "third-world country." Vance, whose wife is from Southern California, expressed a sense of "heartbreak" regarding the condition of Los Angeles. He recalled the city's historically appealing architecture and atmosphere, juxtaposed with areas like skid row.
Rogan, a former resident of California, shared his own reasons for leaving the state. He commented on what he described as a tendency for state officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, to downplay problems by focusing on the state's economic output. "The GDP of like the fifth-largest country in the world. That's what California is," Rogan said, quoting officials. "Hey bro, it was like that before you were the governor!"
Vance suggested that a useful metric for assessing a state's well-being could be the comparative cost of renting a U-Haul truck to move into or out of the state. Rogan reminisced about his past enjoyment of California's lifestyle and climate, attributing his disillusionment to political changes.
Rogan also claimed that the skid row area in Los Angeles, known for its homeless encampments and associated crime, has expanded significantly. He estimated the area had grown by five blocks.