Tanya Mosley

I'm Tanya Mosley, co-host of Fresh Air. At a time of sound bites and short attention spans, our show is all about the deep dive. We do long-form interviews with people behind the best in film, books, TV, music, and journalism. Hear our guests open up about their process and their lives in ways you've never heard before. Listen to the Fresh Air podcast from NPR and WHYY.

It's good to be back with you. Thank you, Tonya.

It's good to be back with you. Thank you, Tonya.

It's good to be back with you. Thank you, Tonya.

To some degree, it is, yeah. He's gone through some dramatic transformations, even in the way he looks and the way he talks and the way he writes, as if there's no solid core to hold him to who he really is. So Vance immediately, for me, raises a question of who authentically is he? What does he believe? Have his changes been owing to some deep inner rethinking of... his values and his politics?

To some degree, it is, yeah. He's gone through some dramatic transformations, even in the way he looks and the way he talks and the way he writes, as if there's no solid core to hold him to who he really is. So Vance immediately, for me, raises a question of who authentically is he? What does he believe? Have his changes been owing to some deep inner rethinking of... his values and his politics?

To some degree, it is, yeah. He's gone through some dramatic transformations, even in the way he looks and the way he talks and the way he writes, as if there's no solid core to hold him to who he really is. So Vance immediately, for me, raises a question of who authentically is he? What does he believe? Have his changes been owing to some deep inner rethinking of... his values and his politics?

Or is he like Mr. Ripley, someone who becomes what other people want him to be to serve his own interests? And I don't think there's a simple answer to that. I don't think he is simply a con man. He's not. I think he's the most interesting figure in the Trump administration. He's more interesting than Trump. Vance has reflection, and that's evident on every page of Hillbilly Elegy.

Or is he like Mr. Ripley, someone who becomes what other people want him to be to serve his own interests? And I don't think there's a simple answer to that. I don't think he is simply a con man. He's not. I think he's the most interesting figure in the Trump administration. He's more interesting than Trump. Vance has reflection, and that's evident on every page of Hillbilly Elegy.

Or is he like Mr. Ripley, someone who becomes what other people want him to be to serve his own interests? And I don't think there's a simple answer to that. I don't think he is simply a con man. He's not. I think he's the most interesting figure in the Trump administration. He's more interesting than Trump. Vance has reflection, and that's evident on every page of Hillbilly Elegy.

He has complexity. He's capable of complex thought. And I also think he may be the future of the MAGA movement and the Republican Party.

He has complexity. He's capable of complex thought. And I also think he may be the future of the MAGA movement and the Republican Party.

He has complexity. He's capable of complex thought. And I also think he may be the future of the MAGA movement and the Republican Party.

Thank you very much. Because he begins in southwestern Ohio in a declining industrial town. But he has roots in Appalachia, which has also gone through tremendous impoverishment and decline. And he calls his culture hillbilly culture. And he's one of the guys who gets out. He's really talented. He's really smart. And once he gets into high school and gets away from his abusive –

Thank you very much. Because he begins in southwestern Ohio in a declining industrial town. But he has roots in Appalachia, which has also gone through tremendous impoverishment and decline. And he calls his culture hillbilly culture. And he's one of the guys who gets out. He's really talented. He's really smart. And once he gets into high school and gets away from his abusive –

Thank you very much. Because he begins in southwestern Ohio in a declining industrial town. But he has roots in Appalachia, which has also gone through tremendous impoverishment and decline. And he calls his culture hillbilly culture. And he's one of the guys who gets out. He's really talented. He's really smart. And once he gets into high school and gets away from his abusive –

an addicted mother to his more caring grandmother, he thrives in high school and joins the Marine Corps. And in the Marines, he learns self-discipline and gains a sense of purpose. He does a lot of reading. He's actually not in combat. He's in public affairs in Iraq. So he's sitting on a giant air base in Anbar province talking to his best friend about Christopher Hitchens and Ayn Rand.

an addicted mother to his more caring grandmother, he thrives in high school and joins the Marine Corps. And in the Marines, he learns self-discipline and gains a sense of purpose. He does a lot of reading. He's actually not in combat. He's in public affairs in Iraq. So he's sitting on a giant air base in Anbar province talking to his best friend about Christopher Hitchens and Ayn Rand.

an addicted mother to his more caring grandmother, he thrives in high school and joins the Marine Corps. And in the Marines, he learns self-discipline and gains a sense of purpose. He does a lot of reading. He's actually not in combat. He's in public affairs in Iraq. So he's sitting on a giant air base in Anbar province talking to his best friend about Christopher Hitchens and Ayn Rand.

And, you know, the other figures of those early 2000s who fascinated mainly young men, I would say. But he also became disillusioned with a war that he had thought was a war of high purpose. And he came home one of many disillusioned veterans. And then he gets into Ohio State, graduates in two years. He's working incredibly hard.