Jennifer Aniston criticises JD Vance's 'childless cat ladies' comment

Jennifer Aniston has spoken out against JD Vance, Donald Trump's vice-presidential candidate, for his recent remarks that insulted Democrats as "childless women with unhappy lives".

The actress from the TV show Friends, who is now 55 years old, shared a 2021 interview with Mr. Vance, which has been very popular since he was chosen as Mr. Trump's running mate for the upcoming presidential election in November.

"I can't believe someone who could be the Vice President of the United States is saying this," she posted on Instagram.

All I can say is... I hope that your daughter will be blessed with the opportunity to have children in the future, Mr Vance.

Mr. Vance is the father of a two-year-old girl and two boys.

"I hope she won't have to resort to IVF as a backup plan," Ms. Aniston expressed.

"You are attempting to strip that from her as well."

The actress has talked openly in the past about her difficulties in trying to start a family using in-vitro fertilization (IVF).

In the previous month, Mr Vance cast a vote against a proposed Democrat bill that aimed to ensure universal access to IVF services.

In the video, Mr. Vance expressed disapproval of Vice President Kamala Harris due to her not having any biological children.

Ms Harris is the mother to her husband Doug Emhoff's two children from a previous relationship.

However, Mr. Vance expressed to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson that the United States is controlled by individuals who do not have children, specifically women who are unhappy in their own lives and want to spread that unhappiness to the rest of the country.

He pointed out that Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez), and other key figures in the Democratic Party do not have children, signaling a shift in leadership towards a younger generation.

Why does it seem reasonable that we have handed control of our nation to individuals who don't have a personal interest in it?

Ella Emhoff, the daughter of Kamala Harris, shared her thoughts on Mr. Vance's remarks on Instagram last Thursday.

"Why do you say you're childless when we have adorable kids like Cole and me?" asked Doug Emhoff's 25-year-old daughter, who is the child of his ex-wife Kerstin Emhoff. Cole Emhoff is her 29-year-old brother.

The BBC reached out to the Trump-Vance campaign for their response.

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg also talked about the remarks earlier this week, discussing how he and his spouse, Chasten, decided to welcome twins into their family.

"It was especially disheartening to hear those words from him, especially considering Chasten and I had already faced a significant setback in our efforts to adopt," Mr Buttigieg revealed during an interview on CNN's The Source.

"He may not have been aware of that - but perhaps that's why it's best not to discuss someone else's kids."

There has been criticism from fans of singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who does not have any children but does have three cats.

"It's brave for a politician to target 'childless cat ladies' as a voting demographic, especially when Taylor Swift, the leader of this group, is a powerful figure," wrote British author Caitlin Moran on an external platform.

Another X user, who is not affiliated, posted the Time magazine cover featuring Swift with one of her cats. The user humorously wrote: "There is no anger like that of a particular cat-loving woman without children who still hasn't supported a presidential candidate."

In 2022, Aniston shared with Allure that she regretted not being advised to preserve her eggs.

"It was a difficult journey for me, the path to becoming a parent," she shared.

For a long time, people have been guessing and guessing... it was very difficult.

"I was undergoing IVF treatment, trying out Chinese herbal teas, and everything else under the sun."

However, she didn't have a single regret.

"I really wish someone had advised me to freeze my eggs. It never even crossed my mind. But now, here I am," she shared with the magazine.

"The opportunity has passed."