Vance has never been a darling of the traditional free-market conservatives that dominate the Republican Vance party. Can he shape Trump’s policy?

Jerry Dobbins remembers a young Vance growing up in Middletown, decades before he would be sworn in as vice president. Dobbins lived two doors down from Vance's grandmother − affectionately known as "Mamaw" − and he called her a "tough bird" who pushed her grandson to do well and stay out of trouble.