Trump Denies J.D. Vance's Beard Will Affect His VP Chances

As Democratic Party officials debate whether Joe Biden should step away from the 2024 presidential race, the Republican Party is facing a hairy situation of its own: J.D. Vance’s beard.

Vance is reportedly on Donald Trump’s short list to be his vice presidential running mate, along with North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.

However, one thing that may affect the Ohio senator’s chances is his beard — because Trump reportedly hates facial hair, according to The Bulwark.

“J.D. has a beard. But Trump is a clean-shaven guy. He just doesn’t like facial hair,” a Trump source who supports Vance told the website, adding, “You just never know.”

But shaving the beard presents a problem for the senator, according to another source, who pointed out that Vance, who turns 40 on Aug. 2, has a baby face and “looks like he’s 12” without one.

Trump denied that Vance’s beard could be a dealbreaker during a Wednesday radio interview with Brian Kilmeade.

“Real quick, on your vice president candidate, word is that you won’t pick J.D. Vance because of his facial hair. Is that true?” Kilmeade asked.

“No,” the former president replied, adding that he thinks Vance “looks good… like a young Abraham Lincoln.”

Kilmeade agreed.

“Right? He’s a handsome man,” the radio host said.

But Trump didn’t want to go that far with compliments.

“Nah, he’s a nice guy,” Trump responded.

You can watch the exchange below.

Vance’s office did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.

However, Marc Caputo, co-author of the Bulwark article, argued that the fact Vance’s beard is a topic of discussion “is a tell.”

Meanwhile, people on social media started making predictions about Vance’s next career move (spoiler alert: It involves