Vice President J.D. Vance’s family was moved to an “undisclosed location” due to security concerns after pro-Ukraine protesters gathered at a Vermont ski resort ahead of their planned vacation over the weekend, according to reports.
Vance, his wife, Usha, and their three young children were met by protesters who lined up outside the Sugarbush Resort just a day after a tense Oval Office meeting between President Donald Trump, Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
What began as a cordial meeting quickly descended into chaos when Zelensky refused to sign an agreed-upon economic deal and continued pushing for increased military aid.
After pushback from Vance, Zelensky warned that the U.S. would soon face national security threats if the Trump administration refused to continue the war, a remark that sparked a furious reaction from Trump. The president quickly decided to halt negotiations for the time being and announced that he would not invite Zelensky back to the White House in the foreseeable future.
The following day, Democrats continued a growing trend by organizing protests outside the Vance family’s planned ski trip. The majority of the protesters, mostly older liberal women, held signs labeling Vance a “traitor” and urging him to “go ski in Russia.”
“Have you no shame? Support Ukraine,” one sign read.
Counter-protesters also made their presence known, with pickup trucks flying “Make America Great Again” flags lining the opposite side of the road. According to a report from the New York Post, other groups of counter-protesters engaged in a shouting match with the anti-Vance crowd outside the resort.
The protests grew so intense that some demonstrators camped out by a ski lift, hoping to catch a glimpse of where they believed the Vances were skiing.
While the protests had been planned earlier in the week, they escalated following the heated Oval Office confrontation, where Zelensky argued publicly with both Vance and Trump during a visit meant to finalize a mineral rights deal. The deal was canceled, and Zelensky was reportedly escorted out of the White House.
Vermont Republican Gov. Phil Scott urged protesters to be mindful of Vance’s planned visit to the state last week.
“I hope Vermonters remember the Vice President is here on a family trip with his young children and, while we may not always agree, we should be respectful,” Scott said in a statement Thursday. “Please join me in welcoming them to Vermont, and hoping they have an opportunity to experience what makes our state, and Vermonters, so special.”
Vermonters were originally planning to protest the cuts to the federal government implemented by the Trump administration, The Post noted.
“Some of us are scared about losing Social Security or Medicaid or parks or having measles epidemics or climate change,” protest organizer Ginny Sassaman of the Indivisible Calais group told outlet VT Digger.
Trump and Republicans have said — repeatedly — that they are not planning any cuts to entitlement benefits but rather are going to look for, and eliminate, waste, fraud and abuse.
The diverse coalition of activists included members from the LGBTQ+ community.
“As a trans person and as a person of color, I’m extremely concerned about the new policies about trans people. I’m concerned about the ICE raids. I have friends who are trans. I have friends who are immigrants who’ve been reaching out to me and saying, ‘We’re scared,’” organizer Katayoun Lam told VT Digger.
During the heated Oval Office meeting with Zelensky on Friday, Vance took a strong stance in front of international media, even going so far as to call out the wartime leader for failing to say “Thank you” for the aid the United States has provided to his country.
“Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelensky.
“Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to this conflict,” he added.
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