Vice President JD Vance has become the most-blocked user on Bluesky, just days after joining the social media platform and attempting to provoke its largely left-leaning user base.
According to ClearSky, a data tracker monitoring Bluesky activity, Vance has been blocked by more than 143,000 users — the highest total since the app publicly launched in February 2024.
The number of users blocking the vice president’s account easily surpassed the previous record-holder, journalist Jesse Singal — best known for his disparaging reports on gender-affirming care for trans youth — who currently sits at 81,531 blocks.
As first reported by Newsweek, Vance joined Bluesky on June 18, writing in what appeared to be a tongue-in-cheek first post: “I’ve been told this app has become the place to go for common sense political discussion and analysis. So I’m thrilled to be here to engage with all of you.”
He then posted a screenshot of Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion in the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding Tennessee’s ban on doctors prescribing gender-affirming treatments to minors.
In the excerpt Vance highlighted, Thomas questioned the practice of deferring to medical experts on treatments for gender dysphoria. He argued that experts have “no license to countermand the ‘wisdom, fairness, or logic of legislative choices,'” and asserted there is no medical consensus on how best to treat minors with gender dysphoria.
Thomas also argued that, regardless of expert opinions on gender-affirming care, states have the right to decide whether such treatments violate medical ethics. He added that “recent revelations suggest that leading voices in this area have relied on questionable evidence, and have allowed ideology to influence their medical guidance.”
“I found Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurrence on medical care for transgender youth quite illuminating,” Vance wrote in a follow-up post. “He argues that many of our so-called ‘experts’ have used bad arguments and substandard science to push experimental therapies on our youth.”
He followed up with another post.
“I might add that many of those scientists are receiving substantial resources from big pharma to push these medicines on kids. What do you think?”
Within 12 minutes, Vance’s account was suspended by Bluesky’s automated impersonation-detection system. It was reinstated and verified shortly afterward.
“Vice President Vance’s account was briefly flagged by our automated systems that try to detect impersonation attempts, which have targeted public figures like him in the past,” a Bluesky spokesperson told TechCrunch. “The account was quickly restored and verified so people can easily confirm its authenticity.”
But as many observers point out, Vance’s attempt to “engage” with Bluesky users reeks of trolling, especially given his late arrival to a platform that has been open since last year, undermining any claims of sincerity.
Bluesky is largely populated by former users of the Elon Musk-owned platform X (formerly Twitter), many of whom left due to its lax content moderation — including transgender users who fled Musk’s so-called “free speech” approach, which led to a surge in hate speech, harassment, and deadnaming.
Musk even floated banning the word “cis” or “cisgender,” echoing anti-transgender claims that the term is a “slur” or form of “hate speech” against so-called biological males and females, rooted in the belief that transgender identities are neither real nor valid.
Scott Talan, a senior lecturer in public communication at American University, told Newsweek that Vance being blocked came as no surprise, given the platform’s left-leaning user base.
“Social media in its earlier life was promised to be a place for ‘conversation’ and connection,” Talan said. “Today’s politics is more polarized and hyper-partisan. So, on social media, political points are made versus any sort of substantive discussion. Blocking JD Vance fits this perfectly. That said, some may argue he went on Bluesky to troll users there. He’s joining the party on that site rather late in the game, and he couldn’t expect to be warmly welcomed there.”
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from enforcing provisions in a pair of anti-LGBTQ executive orders issued earlier this year that threatened to strip congressionally approved funding from LGBTQ service providers and health centers.
The provisions specifically target LGBTQ and HIV prevention organizations that engage in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives or that promote so-called "gender ideology" by recognizing transgender identity as valid.
Before they ended their recently finished legislative session, Texas lawmakers passed a last-minute ban prohibiting K-12 schools from hosting LGBTQ student clubs.
Senate Bill 12, sponsored by Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe), was approved after both chambers approved a conference report clarifying that schools are prohibited from authorizing or sponsoring clubs related to sexual orientation or gender identity.
The provision banning LGBTQ student clubs is part of a larger bill banning diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in public schools.
Tyler Perry is being sued for sexual harassment by Derek Dixon, an actor who appeared on the entertainment mogul's TV drama The Oval.
Dixon, who appeared in 85 episodes of the BET series, alleges in his lawsuit that Perry -- renowned for creating and starring in the Madea film franchise -- used his power and influence in the industry to sexually assault and harass him while forcing him to stay silent.
The actor is seeking at least $260 million in damages, as first reported by TMZ.
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