"I call on every leader in this country not just to tone down the rhetoric but tone down the censorship. Let's have a debate with one another," Vance said on Tuesday.
Vance's remarks came after he argued that numerous attempts had been made to censor Donald Trump, referencing Kamala Harris's past calls to remove Trump from social media and Hillary Clinton's recent suggestion that misinformation should face criminal penalties.
"My friends, if you are willing to throw a person in jail because you disagree with what they say, then you're going to be willing to put a bullet in their head too," Vance added.
The US presidential election will be held on November 5. The Democratic Party was expected to be represented by current US President Joe Biden, but after his disastrous performance in the June debate with Republican opponent Donald Trump, calls for Biden to abandon the race became increasingly loud among Democrats. On July 21, he decided to leave the race and supported the nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris, who was confirmed as the nominee at the Democratic National Convention without having run in a single primary.