According to MS NOW, Vice President J.D. Vance is causing frustration within the US Secret Service due to his personal and family trips.
Last week, agents expressed their concerns over a request to transport Vance’s son to a golf lesson across town by helicopter. The trip to Joint Base Andrews, which features a world-class secure golf complex, required the use of the Marine Two military helicopter designated for the vice president.
According to MS NOW, the trip was canceled at the last minute because of severe thunderstorms and wind gusts in Washington and the surrounding area. Current and former Secret Service officials note that using a military helicopter to transport a child is unprecedented, as SUVs are typically used for such purposes. According to the US Department of Defense budget estimates for 2022, an hour of flight on such a helicopter costs taxpayers between $16,000 and $24,600.
Frequent Changes in Plans and Additional Costs
According to MS NOW, this is not the first instance of Secret Service agents expressing dissatisfaction with Vance’s and his family’s last-minute trips. This is partly due to the vice president having young children—he is the first vice president since Al Gore in the 1990s to have such a young family. Vance and his wife Usha have three children aged nine, six, and four, and the couple is expecting their fourth child later this month. The publication reports that the family has also used a helicopter for last-minute trips while viewing houses for rent or purchase in Middleburg, Virginia.
Traditionally, previous vice presidents and high-ranking administration officials notified the Secret Service of their trips several days in advance, especially when family members were involved. However, one unnamed agent told MS NOW that the Vances “change everything.” “They don’t stick to their schedules, and it costs taxpayers a lot of money,” the source said.
According to MS NOW sources, last-minute trips force agents to urgently adjust their schedules, often canceling weekends and other plans. These unofficial movements, referred to as OTR (off the record), require employees to quickly relocate and develop a security plan on the fly. Agents say the constant occurrence of such situations negatively impacts employee morale. “The unit is tired of the fact that they do not report their plans and constantly do everything in OTR mode,” an unnamed source told MS NOW. “He [Vance] thinks he can still move around like a US senator.”
Reaction and Official Position
According to MS NOW, the use of a helicopter for a trip to a golf lesson would have required approval from the White House Military Office, which reports to President Donald Trump. “This is absurd,” an anonymous source from the publication stated. “Pence and Harris never did anything like this.” Sources tell MS NOW that agents even created commemorative coins and stickers mocking Vance’s frequent last-minute trips, using his Secret Service codename—Bobcat. The items feature the head of a lynx with the inscription “Bobcat OTR Survivors Club,” along with the motto “Advance. OTR. Repeat.”
In an official statement, the vice president’s office told MS NOW that “The Vances are grateful to the men and women of the US Secret Service who serve our country with dedication. While protecting the vice president with a wide range of official duties and a young family that will soon grow is a unique challenge, Secret Service agents professionally carry out their duties every day.”
Source: The New Republic
