At the outset of Christopher Marlowe's late 16th-century play The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus, the scholar at the center of the tale abandons all the learning he has mastered. Law, philosophy, medicine... he turns to magic, making the fateful decision to sell his soul to the demon Mephistopheles, for what he most desires - a world of profit and delight, of power, of honor. That brand of striving, so strong that it compels Faustus to sell what is most essential to him, must lie somewhere in the makeup of Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio, who on Monday was offered and accepted the invitation to be Donald Trump's running mate.
What he has renounced in the process is in the public record for all to see. Eight years ago, during the 2016 Republican primary, Mr. Vance wrote that Mr. Trump's policy proposals range from immoral to absurd, called him unfit for our nation's highest office, and worried that Mr. Trump might be America's Hitler. After Monday's announcement, Mr. Vance distanced himself from those comments, proclaiming Mr. Trump's tenure had changed his mind.
[
Collection
]
[
|
...
]