Erika Kirk's Head-Scratching Defense Of Her Cozy JD Vance Hug Totally Backfires

The JD Vance and Usha Vance's marriage was on everyone's lips after his viral hug with Erika Kirk. At a Turning Point USA event the vice president attended on October 29, he greeted Charlie Kirk's widow on stage, and the pair had a prolonged embrace that saw Erika put her hand on the back of JD's head. Photos of the hug went viral online, and rumors swirled about the relationship between JD and Erika.

Erika Kirk addressed the viral photo of her hugging JD Vance, saying she's just a deeply affectionate person, and intense hugs are part of her love language.

She even joked with Megyn Kelly that if she'd grabbed JD Vance's a** instead, people wouldn't be nearly as mad. pic.twitter.com/Mbchti3BGS

— Shadow of Ezra (@ShadowofEzra) November 24, 2025

Erika addressed the viral moment during a one-hour interview with Megyn Kelly on November 23. An audience member posted a clip of the sit-down to X, where Erika attempted to defend the overly cuddly exchange. "Whoever is hating on hugging needs a hug themselves," Erika said, as photos of the hug with JD were displayed on a screen. "My love language is touch, if you will," she added, while explaining that she was emotional as JD approached her at the Turning Point USA event. "I'm starting to cry. He says, 'He's so proud of you,' and I say, 'God bless you,' and I touch the back of his head," she told Kelly, who joked that people reacted as if Erika had grabbed JD's "a**."

The clip of Erika's explanation went viral, and many users were not buying it, as they thought it was insensitive toward Usha. "Who jokes about something like that when it's SOMEONE ELSE's HUSBAND?!?" one person responded. Several were bothered by Erika using "love language" as part of her explanation. "She doesn't respect boundaries, and her excuse is, 'That's just me,'" a user wrote. "Is that how she addresses the VP? With love language?" another asked. To further complicate matters, Usha was seen without her wedding ring a few days before Erika conducted her interview.

Amid gossip that her marriage to JD Vance was on the rocks after his intimate hug with Erika Kirk, Usha Vance went viral when she visited Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune with Melania Trump. The second lady looked stylish in a tight long-sleeved dress, but what set social media abuzz over photos of her visit to the military base was that she had neglected to wear her wedding ring. Multiple users took the absence of the ring as a sign that SLOTUS and JD's marriage was on the rocks. "She's Quiet Quitting her husband," one X user surmised. The gossip about Usha attending an event sans-ring became so loud that a rep for the second lady issued a statement explaining why Usha left the ring at home. "[Usha is] a mother of three young children, who does a lot of dishes, gives lots of baths, and forgets her ring sometimes," the spokesperson told People on November 22.

Prior to the ring fiasco, Usha sent a not-so-subtle message after JD's hug with Kirk went viral. On November 8, the second couple attended the Marine Corps Ball, where Usha sported a black gown with a white sash across the shoulders, and JD wore a tux. They received a loud round of applause as they approached their seats, and Usha grabbed her husband to put on some PDA before being seated. She went in for a kiss, and JD offered up his cheek, but there was only a quick hug. Unsurprisingly, trolls popped up in the comments when footage of JD and Usha's quick kiss was shared online. "Where's his girlfriend Erica?" a member of the Twitterati asked.