The Olympic Games have always represented something bigger than sport. For a few precious weeks, nations set aside their differences, and athletes draped in their country’s colors carry the hopes of millions. The Winter Olympics in Milan should have been no different — a chance for Americans to cheer together, to feel that familiar swell of pride as our athletes marched into the San Siro.
But something went sideways in Italy this week. And I’m not talking about the Europeans.
Vice President JD Vance traveled to Milan to support Team USA, sitting in the stands with his wife Usha, waving the American flag as our athletes entered the stadium. The team received warm applause. Then the cameras cut to Vance — and a significant portion of the crowd booed the Vice President of the United States for having the audacity to… wave a flag and cheer?
It wasn’t just the European crowd determined to embarrass America on the world stage. Some of our own athletes couldn’t wait to join the pile-on.
From The Telegraph:
Asked on Friday what it means to wear Team USA kit and the American flag, freestyle skier Hunter Hess said: “It’s a little hard. There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of people aren’t. Just because I’m wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the US.”
Let that sink in for a moment. This man gets to represent America at the Olympics — an honor most people would give anything for — and he’s out here issuing disclaimers like it’s a legal document.
He wasn’t alone. Fellow skier Chris Lillis told reporters he feels “heartbroken” about his own country. Call me old-fashioned, but I thought representing your nation was a privilege, not a therapy session. Meanwhile, British-American skier Gus Kenworthy — competing for Team GB — took things even further, urinating a vulgar anti-ICE message into the snow and posting it to his 1.2 million Instagram followers. Classy stuff.
Team USA even quietly renamed their athlete hangout from “Ice House” to “Winter House.” Apparently, the word “ice” is too triggering now. You can’t make this stuff up.
The Truth They Won’t Tell You
The protests in Milan — and the athletes’ sanctimonious posturing — center on ICE agents accompanying the Vice President. Funny how the outraged crowds never mention that these agents are from Homeland Security Investigations, a unit focused on cross-border crimes like human trafficking, not domestic immigration enforcement. Italy’s own Interior Minister confirmed the arrangement complies with binding international agreements.
But why let facts get in the way of a good America-bashing session?
Here’s what I know: when a foreign crowd boos our Vice President for the sin of supporting our athletes, that’s when real Americans stand taller. When athletes treat their own uniform as a burden rather than an honor, it reveals far more about them than about the country they claim to represent.
Millions of Americans watching at home would give anything to wear those colors in competition. They understand what the flag means — not perfection, but promise. Not uniform agreement, but unified purpose.
Vice President Vance kept smiling, kept cheering, kept waving that flag. That’s called leadership. Maybe some of our athletes should take notes.
Key Takeaways
- Vice President Vance was booed at the Olympics simply for waving the American flag and supporting our athletes.
- Some Team USA athletes publicly distanced themselves from their own country on the world stage.
- The ICE agents in Milan are investigators focused on cross-border crimes — not conducting immigration raids.
- When foreign crowds jeer our leadership, true patriots stand taller, not quieter.
Sources: The Telegraph, People.com, Yahoo News
