An old comment by Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance – suggesting childless women are less fit to govern – has sparked a volley of criticism, the latest snap coming from actor Jennifer Aniston.

Vance had singled out Kamala Harris, now the Democratic Presidential nominee, among others during a 2021 interview and said those without offspring, especially “childless cat ladies”, had no “direct stake” in the country.

Speaking to Tucker Carlson on Fox News, he had said the US was being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.”

“It’s just a basic fact. You look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC; the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children. And how does it make any sense that we’ve turned our country over to people who don’t really have a direct stake in it?” Vance was heard saying in the resurfaced clip.

Kamala Harris has two stepchildren, Cole and Ella, with her husband Doug Emhoff and his first wife Kerstin Emhoff.

Vance’s comments have drawn sexism charges ahead of the US Presidential elections that the Republicans were touted to win until President Joe Biden bowed out from the race.

Ms Aniston, pointing to her own infertility that she has been vocal about in the past, shared a screenshot of the clip on Instagram stories and said she couldn’t believe this was coming from a potential US vice president.

“All I can say is…Mr. Vance, I pray that your daughter is fortunate enough to bear children of her own one day. I hope she will not need to turn to IVF as a second option. Because you are trying to take that away from her, too,” Ms Aniston wrote in her post.

Kamala Harris’s lack of biological children has been regarded as an issue by the Republicans, but she has received support from politicians, celebrities, and from her own family. Her supporters also pointed out that no US president has ever physically given birth, since all have been men.

Kerstin Emhoff, the mother of Harris’ stepchildren, has slammed the attacks on the Vice President as “baseless” in a statement to CNN.

“For over 10 years, since Cole and Ella were teenagers, Kamala has been a co-parent with Doug and I. I love our blended family and am grateful to have her in it,” she said.

“I love my three parents. How can you be ‘childless’ when you have cutie pie kids like cole and I,” wrote Ella, 25, on Instagram.

“It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad. My God, they went after ‘cat people,’ good luck with that,” Minnesota Governor Tim Walz told MSNBC.

“Now, what the hell?” asked talk show host Whoopi Goldberg.

File picture of the stars of “Friends,” from left, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Courtney Cox, Jennifer Aniston and Matt LeBlanc. Perry’s co-stars released a statement following his death
| Photo Credit: AP

The stars of “Friends” say they are mourning the “unfathomable” death of Matthew Perry.

“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew,” Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and David Schwimmer said in a joint statement to People on Monday. “We were more than just cast mates. We are a family.”

From 1994 to 2004, each of the five actors appeared in every episode of all 10 seasons of the NBC sitcom along with Perry, who was found dead at his Los Angeles home on Saturday at age 54.

“There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss,” the statement said. “In time we will say more, as and when we are able. For now, our thoughts and our love are with Matty’s family, his friends, and everyone who loved him around the world.”

It was the first public statement on Perry’s death from Aniston, Cox, Kudrow, LeBlanc or Schwimmer.

After an initial investigation, the Los Angeles County coroner has deferred giving a cause of death, which may take weeks to determine.

Others public mourning Perry on Monday included Salma Hayek, his co-star in the 1997 rom-com Fools Rush In, which Perry had said was probably his best film.

“It’s taken me a couple of days to process this profound sadness. There is a special bond that happens when you share dreams with someone, and together you work towards them,” Hayek said in an Instagram post. “Throughout the years, he and I found ourselves reminiscing about that meaningful time in our lives with a deep sense of nostalgia and gratitude. My friend, you are gone much too soon, but I will continue to cherish your silliness, your perseverance, and your lovely heart.”

Perry is being mourned by fans worldwide, including some who placed flowers and heartfelt tributes outside the New York building that served as an exterior for the show.

Others who worked with Perry expressed their sorrow on Sunday, included Friends co-creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane, who said, echoing the style of the show’s episode titles, that this “truly is The One Where Our Hearts Are Broken.”

Morgan Fairchild, who played mother to Perry’s Chandler Bing on the show, and Maggie Wheeler, who played Chandler’s sometime girlfriend Janice, gave similar sentiments.