JD Vance tries out a $5,000 expanded child tax credit proposal to secure support from the pro-family crowd

• Sen. JD Vance on Sunday proposed a $5,000 child tax credit.
• The vice-presidential candidate wants to position the GOP as the party with pro-family policies.
• But Vance missed an early August Senate vote on a child tax credit expansion.

Sen. JD Vance could use an image boost .

Since becoming former President Donald Trump's pick for vice president, the Ohio Republican has been hounded by some controversial past comments .

From previously calling himself a "never Trump guy" to disparaging several top Democratic Party leaders as "childless cat ladies," he's repeatedly had to address remarks that have raised eyebrows.

Amid his ongoing effort to solidify his image as pro-family (but not in a "weird" way ), Vance on Sunday floated a generous $5,000 child tax credit during an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation."

"I'd love to see a child tax credit that's $5,000 per child. But you, of course, have to work with Congress to see how possible and viable that is," Vance told host Margaret Brennan.

Vance is working to position the GOP as the party that would do more to help families. And with most voters continuing to rate the economy as their top issue heading into the general election, the child tax credit remains a top issue for many lawmakers in Washington.

The current child tax credit allows up to $2,000 per child.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Congress expanded that amount to an annual credit of $3,000 to $3,600, depending on the age of the child, but Republicans let that provision expire at the end of 2021.

There's bipartisan support for an expanded credit in the House. But the Senate — with its slim 51-seat Democratic majority and the need for 60 votes to break a filibuster — has held up any meaningful progress on the issue.

In early August , the Senate voted 48-44 on the expanded child tax measure, meaning it did not advance. Vance missed that vote.

While on CBS, the Ohioan referred to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's legislative move as a "show vote," saying it simply didn't have enough support to pass regardless of his presence.

The absence will likely contribute to Democratic efforts to play up the issue ahead of the election as the party looks to hold the White House, keep the Senate, and flip the House.