Close friend of JD Vance who is a Canadian politician revokes his invite to Canada
Canadian politician Jamil Jivani says his friendship with JD Vance has been used against him by his political rivals
A friend of JD Vance has taken back his invite for a visit to Canada and admitted there is an anti-Trump sentiment in the country.
Canada and the US aren’t exactly on the best terms right now, in case you had missed some of the latest political stories in the last few weeks.
In short, Donald Trump and his administration have said Canada will become the 51st American state, Canada says ‘naa, you are alright, buddy’ and the US continues to insist it will.
On top of this, as part of Trump’s ongoing trade war with multiple nations, including allies, Canadians aren’t happy with Trump’s imposition of 25 percent tariffs on its exports.
As you might imagine, all of this hasn’t exactly gone down well in Canada and only a few weeks back stories were emerging of Canadians booing the American national anthem as it was played at sporting events.
The rhetoric from the Donald Trump administration has been rubbing Canadians the wrong way (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
A friend of JD Vance, 37-year-old Canadian politician Jamil Jivani, who went to Yale with the vice-president, highlighted the feeling towards Americans right now in Canada.
The Conservative MP had previously invited Vance to visit his Ontario constituency, but has recently backtracked this offer.
He explained that it wouldn’t be a ‘constructive’ time to visit due to the feelings towards the US in the country right now.
Speaking to Politico, he said: “Right now we have strong political disagreements, and that’s kind of how it is.
“They need to probably reconsider some of their rhetoric and their policy before coming to Canada. Our country should deserve more respect before being able to welcome them.
Jamil Jivani has said what American politicians have been saying about Canada has been a problem for him (Jamil Jivani/Twitter)
Jivani also said that the anti-American sentiment has negatively impacted him as his political opponents used his friendship with Vance against him.
Speaking about the recently gone April election, he said the whole situation proved to be ‘frustrating.’
He explained: “They created commercials about me and JD being friends.
“They doctored pictures of us and dropped them in mailboxes in my riding. The misrepresentation of who I am, what I believe in, the misrepresentation of my commitment to this country, that stuff, was very, very frustrating.”
Jivani also noted he too has taken issue with how US politicians have spoken about Canada in recent months and admitted he and Vance haven’t spoken in a little while.
He continued: “We haven’t talked in a while. He’s busy, I’m busy. It’s just the nature of the work that we do.
“Certainly, the way they’ve talked about Canada has been a problem for me personally. I’m a proud Canadian. I’m focused on my community, and we’ll see what happens next.”
Vice President JD Vance has argued why Mike Waltz wasn’t ‘let go’ as National Security Advisor.
Previously a congressman from Florida’s sixth congressional district, Waltz was one of Donald Trump’s first appointments after he won the 2024 election.
However, just days after the president marked his 100th day in office, Trump revealed that Waltz is moving on.
Yesterday (May 1), Trump confirmed Waltz will no longer be his national security adviser, announcing he would be nominating him to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations instead.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump wrote: “From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our Nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role.”
And JD Vance has since weighed in.
Some say fired, some say moved on (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The news of Waltz moving on from his role as National Security Advisor follows after he was linked to a huge security breach which involved a journalist from The Atlantic being added to a Signal group chat in which other officials discussed classified military plans for US strikes in Yemen.
Following the incident, Waltz told Fox News: “I take full responsibility. I built the group. It’s embarrassing. We’re going to get to the bottom of it.”
Trump stuck up for Waltz at the time, resolving not to fire him, however, sources told ABC News that the relationship wasn’t as smooth-sailing behind closed doors.
However, JD Vance has since spoken out about the decision for Waltz to move on, denying to Fox News’ Special Report host Bret Baier that Waltz was ‘let go’ as a result of the so-called ‘Signalgate’.
Instead, the vice president argued, if anything, ‘you could make a good argument that it’s a promotion,’ highlighting how the administration ‘brought Mike on to do some serious reforms of the National Security Council’ and ‘he has done that’.
He continued: “I like Mike. I think he’s a great guy. He’s got the trust of both me and the president.
“But we also thought that he’d make a better UN ambassador as we get beyond this stage of the reforms that we’ve made to the National Security Council.
“You saw the president announce that Marco Rubio is going to step in as interim leader of the National Security Council.
“So look, I think the media wants to frame this as a firing – Donald Trump has fired a lot of people, he doesn’t give them senate confirmed appointments afterwards, what he thinks is Mike Waltz is going to better serve the administration, most importantly the American people in that role.
“And I happen to agree with him.”
Waltz himself shared the POTUS’ message on his own social media, writing on X: “I’m deeply honored to continue my service to President Trump and our great nation.”
Following Waltz’s departure, Trump announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will act as National Security Advisor in Waltz’s stead, until another person takes on the role.
Vatican rule explained after JD Vance sparks outrage by breaking it and ‘basically giving God the finger’
The vice president perhaps didn’t think this one through
JD Vance basically ‘gave God the finger’ when he broke a very specific and stringent Vatican rule.
The US vice president jetted off to Vatican City in Italy last week to meet some notable figures, including Pope Francis, who Vance met just hours before the 88-year-old died.
The late pontiff served as head of the Catholic Church for 12 years up until his death on Easter Monday (April 21), with his funeral and burial scheduled to take place in the holy city this Saturday.
While Vance, who converted to Catholicism later in life, paid tribute to Francis, a photograph of him from a visit to the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel has also been doing the rounds which has caused a stir online.
JD Vance met the Pope a day before his death (Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
The controversial image in question shows Vance and his son admiring the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling, famously home to Michelangelo’s sprawling religious painting of nine scenes from the Book of Genesis.
Someone gushed on social media that it was an ‘epic shot’ of the pair in the historic centuries-old chapel, adding: “What an incredible way to spend Easter weekend.”
Yet it is here where Vance made the blatant mistake that many people have been fuming about.
“Taking this pic is basically like giving God the finger,” raged one on Twitter while another slammed Vance as having ‘no respect’.
And that’s because among the Vatican’s lengthy list of rules is some very strict policies on photography, electronic equipment and mobile phones.
There’s a good reason why there are so many strict rules for visitors at the Sistine Chapel (Getty Images)
According to visitor’s rules, photography can be taken in the Vatican museums – in all but the Sistine Chapel.
While non-flash photography is allowed pretty much everywhere else – though tripods, drones and ‘selfie sticks’ are banned across the site – no images or film are to be taken in the Sistine Chapel in any format whatsoever.
The rules state, in bold, on the website: “In the Sistine Chapel it is forbidden to take photographs or films with any type of electronic equipment. The guard staff is authorised to request the immediate cancellation, in their presence, of video or photographic material produced in contravention of this rule.”
Cell phones can be permitted across the museums providing they are on silent, but again are forbidden inside the Sistine Chapel.
To this end, visitors must also observe ‘absolute silence’ out of ‘respect for and in view of the sanctity of the location.’
The reason it has such strict rules comes down to the magnificent artwork, which Michelangelo finished painting in 1512 at the age of 36.
The painting has more than 300 figures on it and depicts several biblical stories from the Book of Genesis, including the Creation of Adam to the Fall of man after Noah’s flood and the Last Judgement.
It has portraits of prophets and sibyls announcing the coming of the Messiah, making it the perfect site for papal court ceremonies for the VIP’s of the city.
Michelle Obama had a similar image taken inside the chapel (MAURIX/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
Its most famous function is the Conclave, which makes up the assembly of cardinals who will soon gather under the historic ceiling, lock all the doors and discuss their election of the new pope in total secrecy.
However, while Vance has seemingly flouted the rules, he may have been spared being booted out since the image was taken by an official White House photographer, suggesting he likely got permission for the image before his visit.
Other visiting US officials and their families have also had similar snaps in the chapel, including former first lady Michelle Obama who had a snap admiring the artwork while touring the landmark in 2009.
Russell Crowe and Jason Momoa have also shared images from inside the chapel.
