Vice President JD Vance has been in office since January, and already he’s racked up more vacation days than most Americans could dream of in a decade. The man who built his brand railing against “elites” has basically become one — living like the very people he claimed to stand against.
His latest trip? A summer holiday in the Cotswolds, the region of England nicknamed “the Hamptons of the UK.” Vance rented a sprawling manor that goes for about $10,000 a week. Between his motorcades clogging tiny country roads and the protests that followed him across the pond, it’s safe to say his family getaway got more press than privacy.
But this isn’t an isolated incident. This is vacation No.8 this year.
Italy, India, Nantucket, Disneyland, Vermont, Greenland — wherever you can name, he’s been. Some of those vacations he even labeled as “official business,” meaning taxpayers footed the bill. Like in March, when he flew with the second lady to Greenland during the height of Trump’s fixation with the territory. The trip was so poorly received by Greenland’s government that it was cut it short from a multi-day trip to a three hours’ trip.
Imagine flying all that way for less time than most people spend at a barbecue. The only thing that came from the trip were some Instagram-ready photos of Vance and his wife in the snow.
Then there’s Disneyland, which he shut down for his family. Then there’s a $2,500 Michelin-starred dinner in San Diego. And who could forget his birthday kayak trip, when the military literally raised the level of an Ohio river just to smooth out his paddling conditions. That’s not just elite — that’s emperor-level.
The bigger question is: how does he have so much time off? Most Americans can’t even get two consecutive weeks approved without begging their boss. Yet the sitting vice president has managed to disappear almost every month since taking office. For context, Mike Pence barely took personal trips in his first six months. Kamala Harris didn’t take a single personal vacation in hers.
Meanwhile, families here at home are being crushed under the weight of rising costs. Groceries, health care, gas — everyday basics are becoming luxuries. And while Americans are forced to “do more with less,” their vice president seems determined to “do less with more.”
The optics matter. When you’re the right-hand man to Donald Trump, the guy who wants to convince working-class America that he’s their champion, jet-setting across the globe on lavish retreats doesn’t scream solidarity. It screams out-of-touch.
So as the bills pile up and medical benefits shrink because of the “big beautiful bill,” JD Vance may be hard to find. Not in Washington. Not in Ohio. But likely on vacation — again.
The message is clear: while everyday Americans are fighting to make ends meet, JD Vance is fighting to make his next reservation.
Lindsey Granger is a News Nation contributor and co-host of The Hill’s commentary show “Rising.” This column is an edited transcription of her on-air commentary.
