Perhaps it would serve JD Vance and his far-right band of weirdos well to learn about one of the all-time gay icons: Barbra Streisand.

While the pop legend will forever be lauded for her pitch perfect voice, she did commit one public relations blunder that lives in infamy.

In case you need a refresher: Back in 2003, one of the 10-time Grammy winner’s attorneys sued an aerial photographer for publishing a picture of her clifftop estate in Malibu. The photo appeared in a series of shots documenting coastal erosion, and Streisand’s team sued the photog for $50 million.

Prior to the suit, the image was only downloaded six times, including twice by Streisand’s lawyers. But once the Associated Press picked up the story, more than 420,000 people viewed the photo.

In an ironic twist, Streisand’s efforts to shield the image wound up making it a national story. Hence, the “Streisand Effect” (and its accompanying Wikipedia page) was born. The theory rests on the idea that if one makes an attempt to remove information, it can often make the info more visible.

(To add insult to injury, Streisand lost the case, and was ordered to pay the photog’s legal fees.)

It’s appropriate to revisit the Streisand Effect now, given the proliferation of unflattering discourse surrounding Vance. Trump’s #2 has a long history of making creepy and disparaging remarks, including broadsides against “childless cat ladies” and “sociopathic” people without children.

Vance has said so many bizarre statements, it can be difficult to separate fact from fiction. One of the false online narratives surrounding him is the assertion that he’s tried to engage in sexual intercourse with a couch (a surefire sign that his campaign is really, really NOT going well).

When Trump announced Vance as his running mate, somebody posted a fictionalized blurb from Hillbilly Elegy in which Vance admits to fornicating with an “inside-out latex glove between two couch cushions.” The lie gained traction on social media, propelling the AP to issue a now-retracted fact-check: “No, JD Vance did not have sex with a couch.”

In pure Streisand Effect fashion, the AP’s fact-check wound up blowing up the lie. And weirdly, Vance seems determined to keep the news cycle going.

At an event Tuesday, the Ohio senator made a… couch reference. Seriously!

“I would call my wife up here to speak but then I think I’d have to sleep on the couch,” he said to tepid laughter.

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While we would never expect oratory charm from a man who “jokes” about racist Mountain Dew, it’s crazy that Vance would bring up anything couch-related. What’s next? A riff on women and dolphins?! (Don’t click that link!)

Outraged about the weird accusations, Fox News host Jesse Watters dedicated a portion of his primetime show Monday to couch talk.

“They’re accusing JD Vance of having sex with a couch. Not on a couch. With a couch. That’s a weird thing to do. And now they’re calling him ‘weird,'” he scolded, before playing a video on Democrats accurately describing Vance and his chauvinistic beliefs.

“Democrats made up a story about JD Vance having sex with a couch, and called him ‘weird’ 150 times this weekend,” Watters fumed.

Given the average Fox News viewer is 68 years old, it’s unlikely that many of Watters viewers were even aware of Vance’s fantastical sofa dalliance.

That is, until now…

Republicans are flailing in their attempts to attack Kamala Harris, 10 days after Joe Biden announced he wouldn’t seek re-election. Vance admitted as much in a private call with donors.

“All of us were hit with a little bit of a sucker punch,” he said about Harris’ candidacy. “All of us were hit with a little bit of a sucker punch. The bad news is, Kamala Harris does not have the same baggage as Joe Biden, because whatever we might say, Kamala Harris is a lot younger. And Kamala Harris is obviously not struggling in the same ways that Joe Biden did.”

For the first time since Trump descended down his golden escalators, the criminally convicted ex-president isn’t controlling the news cycle. Harris, fresh off a raucous campaign speech in Atlanta, is driving the conversation.

Right on script, Trump is scheduled to speak in the same arena… days later.

Good luck with that!

Still searching for a relatable message, Vance is doubling down on his screed against childless adults, despite it completely backfiring every single time he does. In a recent interview with people from the Federalist Society, he railed against “female millennial writers” and “sad, lonely, pathetic” people who focus on their careers instead of raising children.

“We have to go to war against the anti-child ideology that exists in our country,” Vance said.

Yeah, that’s probably not gonna do it! Maybe Vance should lay down on a therapist’s couch, and figure out what’s wrong.

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