What happened to JD Vance in Vermont?

In a beautiful display of the American right to free speech, hundreds of Vermont residents showed up on Saturday to crash JD Vance‘s family vacation. Just hours after a display of exactly how not to host a live peace negotiation, Vance took his family on what should have been a relaxing weekend ski trip.

Unfortunately for the vice president’s family, hundreds of protesters flooded the town, lining the roadways and voicing their support for Ukraine and their distaste for the administration.

Why were protesters waiting for JD Vance in Vermont?

Just a day after a heated clash in the Oval Office between the Trump-Vance administration and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vance got a taste of American outrage. While Republicans across the country are being lambasted at town halls to such an extreme they’re blaming it on paid agitators, Vance hasn’t yet faced down the gun of outrage — until this weekend.

The Vance family trip was leaked on February 26, several days before the showdown. While pro-Ukraine group Indivisible Mad River Valley had already rallied protesters to crash the party, one participant, Judy Daly, says the talks amplified the turnout. “I think the performance at the White House galvanized even more people to come out today,” she told Vermont Public Radio.

Thousands of Vermonters flooded the sleepy little town of Waitsfield, Vt., on Saturday, lining the roads and taking to the slopes of the Sugarbush Ski Resort in hopes of encountering the VP. It was a bold idea to travel to a state that swung almost 70% Harris this last election, has elected Bernie Sanders for nearly 4 decades in a row, and was the birthplace of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream. It’s estimated that 1000 and 3000 protestors it the town that morning, with more driving the streets, displaying their own protest signs, and honking for their allies on the ground.

One organizer, Tisa Rennau, told Main Morning Star, “People are angry… We are no longer the leader of the free world. What has happened? This is not the America we expect to be.”

Frustrated Vermonters came out in droves to exercise their right to free speech, lining the snow-piled roads with signs and flags. From trans lives activists and Elon Musk detractors to those calling Vance a “pawn of Putin,” they gathered near ski lifts rumored to have been used by Vance and stood, according to one woman,  “where the people in power are.”

The nearby town of Warren, where the Vance family was initially set to stay, was also temporarily occupied with protestors. Decorated with the colors of the Ukrainian, American and LGBTQIA+ flags, and waving homemade signs, protestors gathered near the inn. Pro-Trump and Vance supporters stood across the roadway, waving “Make America Great Again” signs, in what one man called a “positive support rally.”

One Tiktoker, who shared multiple videos from their time on the mountain, claimed in a comment that “the Trump supporters only showed up once most of the protesters had already left,” and that they “got booed away FAST.”

Vermont Governor Phil Scott implored his constituents to play nice with the second family ahead of the trip. “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,” he said.

Vermonters took the comment to heart. While protestors and counter protestors moved around each other all weekend, there were no violent incidents.