ATHENS, GEORGIA — Vice President JD Vance traveled to Athens, Georgia, for a campus tour event organized by Turning Point USA, arriving after a marathon trip to Pakistan that failed to reach a deal for ending the war with Iran. The event was held in a mostly empty arena where empty seats outnumbered attendees by more than 2-to-1.

Vance acknowledged that not all young conservatives support another U.S. war in the Middle East. "I'm not saying you have to agree with me on every issue," he said. "What I'm saying is don't get disengaged."

Vance took questions from Turning Point USA executive Andrew Kolvet instead of Erika Kirk, who began leading the organization after the assassination of her husband Charlie Kirk. Kirk canceled her plans to be on stage because of unspecified threats she had received, according to Kolvet. Vance said he had been worried that the event would be canceled altogether. His presence ensured Secret Service and other law enforcement protection around the venue.

During the event, Vance jousted with at least one heckler over the war in Gaza. He was also pressed by another person over the administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case files. Many college-age attendees wore Turning Point USA attire, Trump hats, and red-white-and-blue paraphernalia.

A day before the event, Vance said a meme was a joke that many people did not understand. He also addressed the role of the Vatican in political matters. "It would be best for the Vatican to stick to matters of morality, to stick to matters of what's going on in the Catholic church and let the president of the United States stick to dictating American public policy," he said.

C.J. Santini, an attendee, said President Trump's attack on Pope Leo XIV was a distraction from Trump's agenda in Iran and at home. "It's just stupid. Stupid," Santini said.

Blake McCluggage, another attendee, said he did not approve of the meme or President Trump's Easter Sunday message threatening widespread destruction of Iran's civilian infrastructure. "You can still be a Republican," McCluggage said.