Trump joked Vance was whisked off stage at lightning speed while he was left wondering why agents didn’t rush him out quite as dramatically.
Speaking on May 11 during a Police Week event in the Rose Garden, Trump described the moments after gunfire erupted outside the Washington Hilton on April 25, per a video obtained by The New York Post.
“They had great professional people, and they came out within seconds,” Trump told the crowd, praising Secret Service agents.
But the president quickly pivoted to joking about Vance’s frantic removal from the ballroom.
“I saw them take J.D. by the shoulders and lift him up like he was a little boy,” Trump said. “I said, ‘how come they didn’t lift me up so fast?'”
The crowd laughed as Trump continued: “They lifted J.D. — got ripped out of the chair. That was a view of the week, but they did the job, J.D., right? I think so.”