Is Susan Rice's Son Republican? Their Political Views Couldn't Be More Different
Updated Aug. 11 2020, 5:10 p.m. ET
Most people know Susan Rice as a former national security adviser during the Obama administration and as an ambassador to the United Nations before that. The Democratic politician was also on Joe Biden's shortlist of potential vice president picks, prior to choosing Sen. Kamala Harris. What many might not know about her, however, is that her son's political views are in stark contrast to her own.
But is Susan Rice's son Republican? Let's take a closer look at his party affiliation.
Is Susan Rice's son, John David Rice-Cameron, Republican?
We're going to go with a big "yes" on this one. Not only is Susan's son, John David Rice-Cameron, a proud Republican, but he was actually the president of the Stanford College Republicans.
One of John David's first big events as the head of the GOP at Stanford University was called "Make Stanford Great Again" — and the 2018 Facebook event's description seems to sum up the group's / his views:
“Trump is great. Build the wall. Deport criminal illegals. Guns save lives. There are only two genders. Abortion is murder. Defund sanctuary city San Francisco. Taxation is theft. Affirmative action is racist. White privilege is a lie.”
Something else that was noteworthy during his time leading the Stanford College Republicans: John David had an encounter at a pro-life demonstration, after which he filed (and later dropped) an assault charge against a female sophomore for allegedly shoving him.
Despite their political differences, it seems Susan and her son are on relatively good terms.
“My mother and I have a great relationship, and my mother believes strongly in the free and respectful exchange of ideas,” John David told Fox News in 2018. “We disagree on most of the standard Republican-Democrat disagreements. However, we agree that America is the greatest nation the world has ever seen, and thus, we believe that America has an important role to play as a force for liberty and justice on the world stage.”
Susan Rice loves her Republican son dearly.
Susan has since echoed her son's sentiments about their relationship.
“I have a 23-year-old son whom I love dearly, whose politics are very, very different from my own and from the rest of our family,” Susan told NPR in August 2020. “My son and I will have some robust disagreements over some matters of policy, not all. And yet, at the end of the day, you know, I love him dearly and he loves me.”
Susan continued: “We agree, for example, on the importance of the United States playing a responsible, principled leadership role in the world. We agree on the importance of having strong alliances. We agree we have to be clear-eyed and strong in dealing with adversaries like Russia and the threat that China may pose. We disagree on things like choice. I’m pro-choice. He’s pro-life. That’s the kind of difference that we ought to be able to respect.”
In her 2019 memoir Tough Love: My Story of the Things Worth Fighting For, Susan repeatedly wrote about her and her son's contrasting political views. And spoiler alert: Sometimes it isn't pretty.
"As close as Jake and I are, we know exactly how to push each other’s buttons. Like every good Dickson and Rice, he is not shy about advocating, even aggressively, for what he believes. Our arguments can be calm and rational — when we try hard to reason deliberately and exercise maximum restraint," she wrote.
Susan continued, "More often, a phone call or casual conversation in the car or around the dinner table can escalate into an explosive, sometimes profane argument."
So yes — Susan Rice's son is a Trump-loving Republican. And although it looks like mother and son definitely know how to push one another's buttons, they haven't allowed politics to prevent them from having a loving relationship.