Iranian speaker quotes JD Vance’s book, warns of “Hillbilly Elegy 2”

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has quoted a line from US Vice President JD Vance’s book Hillbilly Elegy.

“'We felt trapped in two unwinnable wars and a disproportionate share of fighters came from our neighborhood' — JDV, Hillbilly Elegy, Ch 11." he wrote on X.

Ghalibaf added a political commentary alongside the quotation, writing: “Hillbilly 2 incoming. America's poor & forgotten will foot the bill for the broligarchs, Dimon the demon, and the beltway war merchants.” 

The speaker is seemingly mentioning JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon, whom he called "Dimon the demon."

"We felt trapped in two unwinnable wars and a disproportionate share of fighters came from our neighborhood" — JDV, Hillbilly Elegy, Ch 11.

Hillbilly 2 incoming. America's poor & forgotten will foot the bill for the broligarchs, Dimon the demon, and the beltway war merchants.

— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) May 20, 2026

Ghalibaf's remarks referenced Vance’s 2016 autobiographical book Hillbilly Elegy.

Hillbilly Elegy is a memoir that blends personal biography with a sociological reflection on white working-class life in the American Rust Belt and Appalachia.

The book traces Vance’s childhood in Ohio and Kentucky, focusing on family instability, addiction, and intergenerational poverty, while also arguing that cultural patterns within these communities play a major role in social decline.

Critics and reviewers in major outlets such as The Guardian noted that while the book was influential and widely read, its interpretation of poverty has been debated for emphasising cultural causes over structural economic factors.

By Jeyhun Aghazada