Donald Trumps vice presidential running mate, JD Vance, drew high-profile backlash this week for his remark in 2021 about top Democrats, such as Vice President Kamala Harris, being childless cat ladies.

The View co-host Whoopi Goldberg slammed Vance with a how dare you on Wednesday mornings broadcast, and former Friends star Jennifer Aniston made a rare political statement later that day.

I truly cant believe this is coming from a potential VP of The United States, Aniston said on Instagram . All I can say is...Mr. Vance, I pray that your daughter is fortunate enough to bear children of her own one day.

Kerstin Emhoff, a film producer and the ex-wife of second gentleman Doug Emhoff, called the comments baseless attacks, pointing out Thursday that Harris has for years been a co-parent of their children.

She is loving, nurturing, fiercely protective and always present, Kerstin Emhoff told CNN . I love our blended family and am grateful to have her in it.

The Trump-Vance campaign hasnt responded to the criticism.

In 2021, Vance blasted the childless left in a speech, arguing that people without children have less of a stake in the countrys future. He followed the speech with an incendiary interview on Fox News in which he specifically mentioned Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Harris.

Were effectively run in this country, via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that theyve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too, Vance, now a U.S. senator from Ohio, said at the time.

Its just a basic fact: You look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC, the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children, he said. And how does it make any sense that weve turned our country over to people that dont have a direct stake in it?

The remarks drew wider attention after Trump named Vance as his running mate last week.

In case anyone missed it, on Thursday the Harris campaign posted a clip of the interview to its 1 million followers on X, the website formerly known as Twitter. And in an email heralding World IVF Day, the Harris campaign said Vance is driving away voters in droves, insulting couples struggling with infertility who are sounding off on his disparaging comments about childless women.

In vitro fertilization emerged as a major political issue this year after an Alabama Supreme Court decision put IVF procedures on shaky legal footing. The decision followed the U.S. Supreme Courts overturning of Roe v. Wade, the federal right to an abortion, and put Republicans on the defensive. Trump has insisted his would defend IVF if hes elected president.

Buttigieg and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, both potential vice presidential picks for Harris, also piped up about the cat ladies comment on Wednesday.

Go ahead and continue to denigrate people. My God, they went after cat people. Good luck with that, Walz said on MSNBC. Turn on the internet and see what cat people do when you go after them.

Buttigieg, for his part, told CNN that Vance listed him as a childless cat lady at a time when he and his husband had had a heartbreaking setback in their efforts to adopt children. (They now have twins.)

He couldnt have known that, Buttigieg said of Vance, but maybe thats why you shouldnt be talking about other peoples children.