Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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JD Vance says his hometowns shaped who he is. His 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy, about growing up between Ohio and Kentucky, launched his political career. So what are those places really like? We went to both. In Part 1, we visit Middletown, Ohio, where Vance went to school, to hear from his neighbors.

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► Rust Belt: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D2Di5bzXIMrM6Ef_IIiRNYU&si=Q5ewau_4vb0tGkMC
► Appalachia: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D1NPe26BHDdE_6X1pk6UysX&si=3eXpFF7-t_C3S2hi
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► Pakistan: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D3Dc07Xay6AUtGomrzxE2pZ

00:00 Vance’s Rust Belt Hometown
1:14 Make America Great Again?
1:41 Childhood Home
2:40 Vance’s Neighbor
3:45 Accurate Portrayal?
4:20 “Two-Class Country”
6:30 Decline
10:30 Highschool
10:42 Downtown
12:40 Nepali Business Owner
13:20 "New Arrival" Guy
17:20 Prosperous Neighborhood
18:25 Part 2 Teaser

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Episode #91
Subs: 481k subs

#ohio #vance #middletown