Vance blames vacation controversy on Secret Service

It’s not his fault, folks! That was the message from Vice President J.D. Vance’s office after news emerged revealing water levels in an Ohio River tributary were raised while the veep enjoyed a kayaking vacation with his family to celebrate his 41st birthday, Knewz.com can report. According to data publicly available on the U.S. Geological Survey website, records confirm there was a sudden increase in the Little Miami River’s water level — and a corresponding drop in nearby Caesar Creek Lake’s water surface elevation — on the same dates the vice president was visiting the area.

A Secret Service request

The request to raise the water level didn’t come from Vance, his office insisted. In fact, a spokesperson said, the veep was unaware the level had been raised at all. The Secret Service made the ask, which saw the Army Corps of Engineers alter the outflow of Ohio’s Caesar Creek Lake, which feeds the river where Vance and his family were kayaking. The purpose was to “support safe navigation” for the vice president’s security detail, an Army Corps of Engineers spokesperson said.

Officials’ explanations

“The Secret Service often employs protective measures without the knowledge of the vice president or his staff,” a spokesperson for Vance told The Independent. Before that, a Secret Service spokesperson told the outlet the federal law enforcement agency had coordinated with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Army Corps of Engineers to make sure the VP’s security detail would be able to “operate safely with appropriate water levels during a recent visit.”

Another reason for the adjustment?

An anonymous source told The Guardian that a request was made to raise the river levels not only to support safe navigation for Vance’s security detail but also to create “ideal kayaking conditions” for the vice president. However, the kayaking claim was denied to another outlet, The Independent, by a source familiar with the matter. That source said that ahead of Vance’s birthday trip, one of the boats ran aground during a Secret Service scouting mission of the area alongside local public safety officials, which is what led them to ask for the water levels to be raised.

Critics pounce

To Vance’s critics, the water-level adjustment revelation — despite who made the request — came off as hypocritical considering President Donald Trump’s administration has overseen major job cuts in the National Park Service. “It’s outrageous for the Army corps of engineers to spend taxpayer money to increase water flow in a river so @VP can go canoeing when budget cuts to the National Park Service have severely impacted family vacations for everyone else,” Richard Painter, an ethics lawyer who served in former President George W. Bush’s administration, wrote on social media.

More special treatment

Vance and his family have received special treatment on other trips, too. During an April visit to Italy, Rome’s Colosseum was closed early to accommodate a private visit by second lady Usha Vance. The same month, the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, was also closed to tourists until the veep and his family could visit the iconic mausoleum and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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