Vance's Vermont ski trip draws protests after Zelensky fracas

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Warren, Vermont, on Saturday, protesting Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Sugarbush Resort for a skiing trip. This comes just a day after his heated confrontation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House.

As Vance arrived with his family, Fox News reports that he was met with a half-mile stretch of protesters holding pro-Ukraine signs and condemning his stance on the conflict. Some demonstrators held banners labeling him "Nazi scum" and a "traitor", while others urged him to "go ski in Russia." Additional signs read "Trump serves Putin," "Theocracy is not freedom," and "Stand with Ukraine." The crowd, estimated in the hundreds, loudly voiced their opposition as the Vice President entered the resort.

Political commentator and entrepreneur Brian Krasssenstein shared on X a clip of pro-Ukraine protestors on the streets of Vermont to let America know what they think of the vice president's ski retreat.

White House confrontation

The protest followed a tense exchange between Vance and Zelensky during a Friday meeting at the White House, where the Ukrainian leader resisted a US-backed mineral rights deal that President Donald Trump claimed would help secure a peace agreement.

Vance openly criticized Zelensky at the televised event, saying, "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." He accused Ukraine of forcing conscripts to the front lines due to manpower shortages and insisted that Zelensky should be grateful for Trump’s efforts to end the war.

During the confrontation, Trump and Vance repeatedly pressured Zelensky to accept a settlement, with Trump warning, "You're either going to make a deal or we're out, and if we're out, you'll fight it out and I don't think it's going to be pretty."

Zelensky left the meeting shortly after, with reports indicating he had been asked to leave by senior Trump officials. Trump later posted on social media that "he can come back when he is ready for peace."

Following the dramatic encounter, Zelensky defended his stance in an interview with Fox, saying, "I'm not sure that we did something bad," though he acknowledged that he regretted the exchange happening in front of reporters.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested that Zelensky should apologize.