Before 2016, JD Vance was completely unknown to the American public. He had a compelling life story: A poor kid from a dysfunctional family in Middletown, Ohio, encouraged by the loving support of his grandmother and a handful of others within his family and community. He rose from a broken home and a broken community, joined the Marines, went to Yale Law School, and ended up an elite lawyer working in Silicon Valley with some of the richest and smartest people in the world.

Now, Vance is one of the most powerful and influential Republicans in the country. But unlike many politicians, Vance is a public intellectual. Years before he ran for public office, Vance was a prolific thinker, writer, and speaker, grappling with some of the most important issues that face the Republican Party and the nation today.

Vance has a solid grip on where the Republican Party has come from and where it is heading. He sees the various factions and coalitions that make up the Party and understands them deeply. As the Republican Party works to adapt to the political changes initiated by Trump to truly become the profamily and pro-worker Party of the American middle class, Vance stands alone as the most knowledgeable and capable politician to bring the Republican Party—and the nation—into the post-Donald Trump world.