Secret Service agents charged with the protection of Vice President JD Vance are “fed up” with “inappropriate” travel requests being submitted to them – and are facing a “building morale problem” within the team, according to a report.
At the center of the complaints was a recent request that they fly Vance and his young son across Washington for a golf lesson in Marine Two, a trip that was only canceled due to bad weather, MS Now reports.
“That is RIDICULOUS,” one person reportedly said of the planned jaunt in a private message. “[Mike] Pence and [Kamala] Harris never pulled anything like that.”
“They change everything,” another complained. “They don’t stick to their schedules, and that costs s***-tons of taxpayer money.”
The chopper’s use would have to be approved by the White House Military Office at a cost to taxpayers of between $16,000 and $24,600 per hour, according to 2022 Defense Department budget estimates.
Sources privately told the network that while there is no policy preventing agents from using a government helicopter for such an errand, the task had “no precedent” and was typical of the undue pressure they felt they were being placed under by the regular last-minute requests submitted on behalf of the second family.
The Vances also recently undertook several trips by helicopter to Middleburg, Virginia, in order to house hunt. Vance and second lady Usha Vance have three children – aged nine, six and four – and are expecting a fourth imminently.
“The detail is tired of them not giving notice on things and making everything an OTR [off the record],” a source told MS Now. “[Vance] thinks he can still move around like a U.S. senator.”
Such is the mood of resentment among members of the service that they have even had a range of challenge coins and stickers custom-made to satirize the situation.
One, featuring a bobcat in reference to Vance’s official code name, carries the slogan “TBD, TBD” [to be determined] and the strapline: “Advance. OTR. Repeat.”
Another, in the style of a sheriff’s star, reads: “Bobcat OTR Survivors Club.”
A spokesperson for Vance told The Independent:“The Vances are grateful to the men and women of the U.S. Secret Service who serve our country with distinction.
“While protecting a Vice President with a large policy portfolio and a young and growing family presents a unique challenge, agents of the Secret Service do so with excellence every day.”
Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said in a statement of his own: “When U.S. Secret Service Special Agents choose to join a protective detail, they understand the commitment required: long hours, frequent travel, and the need for constant flexibility.
“Nights, weekends, and holidays are part of the job. Our agents work tirelessly to ensure protectees’ safety and security, while also preserving normalcy to the extent possible.
“We are committed to supporting our personnel, which requires around the clock dedication and discipline. This is a job that requires absolute dedication and discipline.”
Appearing on MS Now’s Deadline Wednesday, Carol Leonnig, one of the journalists behind the story, told host Nicolle Wallace: “The Secret Service doesn’t complain a lot.
“When they’re angry in this way, it’s sort of a red alarm. They’re an overworked, under-resourced agency.
“Some of them use the word ‘royal treatment.’ They’re not used to providing royal treatment to the children of a vice president.”
