Hundreds of protesters gathered in Vermont on Saturday to demonstrate against Vice President JD Vance’s visit to a local ski resort, less than 24 hours after his heated exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Vance, who was accompanied by his family at Sugarbush Resort in Warren, Vermont, was met by a half-mile line of protesters holding pro-Ukraine signs. The crowd, which appeared to number in the hundreds, carried signs labeling Vance as “Nazi scum,” calling him a “traitor,” and urging him to “go ski in Russia.” Other signs read, “Trump serves Putin,” “Theocracy is not freedom,” and “Stand with Ukraine.”
However, not all local skiers were critical of Vance’s visit. One skier expressed frustration with the protesters, telling Fox News Digital, “Those people protesting Vance are f—ing morons.”
Vance and his family initially planned to stay at a four-star inn near the resort but relocated to an undisclosed location after encountering the protests. They later skied on a less crowded side of the mountain, though demonstrators eventually gathered there as well.
The protests followed a tense exchange between Vance and Zelenskyy at the White House the previous day. The disagreement began when Zelenskyy hesitated to sign a mineral rights deal that President Trump claimed would facilitate a peace agreement.
“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 Zelenskyy. “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.”
Vance later questioned whether Zelenskyy had expressed gratitude during the meeting, asking, “You went to Pennsylvania and campaigned for the opposition in October. Offer some words of appreciation for the United States of America and the president who’s trying to save your country.”
Zelenskyy responded by stating that Vance was speaking “loudly,” prompting President Trump to intervene and support Vance, telling Zelenskyy that his country was “in trouble.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Sugarbush Resort for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
March 1, 2025, 5:41 PM EST
