U.S. Vice-President JD Vance is facing criticism after his security detail instructed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to raise the water level of an Ohio river so his family could go on a kayaking trip for his 41st birthday.
As first reported by the Guardian, the U.S. Secret Service said it requested increased water flow into the Little Miami River so that motorized boats and emergency personnel “could operate safely” while protecting the vice-president, whose home is in Cincinnati.
U.S. Vice-President JD Vance fishes with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy at Chevening House on Aug. 8, 2025, in Sevenoaks, England.
Suzanne Plunket / Getty Images
The move riled up Vance’s critics, who accused him of behaving in an entitled manner in the wake of government spending cuts to public services.
Richard W. Painter, who served as chief White House ethics lawyer under former president George W. Bush, said on X, “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.”
As I said here, 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.https://t.co/3fArb5NwkM
— Richard W. Painter (@RWPUSA) August 7, 2025
The corps of engineers did not address any financial impact of raising the river, The Associated Press reported, but spokeperson Gene Pawlik said the agency’s Louisville District temporarily increased outflows from the Caesar Creek Lake in southwest Ohio into the Little Miami “to support safe navigation of U.S. Secret Service personnel.”
He said the move met operational criteria and was not outside the bounds of regular practice.
“It was determined that the operations would not adversely affect downstream or upstream water levels,” Pawlik added. “Downstream stakeholders were notified in advance of the slight outflow increase, which occurred August 1, 2025.” Vance’s birthday was on Aug. 2.
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Vance spokesperson Taylor Van Kirk said the vice-president was unaware the river had been raised.
“The Secret Service often employs protective measures without the knowledge of the Vice President or his staff, as was the case last weekend,” Van Kirk told The Associated Press via text message.
This is not the first instance of special accommodations being made for the Vance family.
During a recent trip to Italy, the Colosseum was closed to the public so that Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, and their children could tour the historic site, sparking anger among some tourists. The Taj Mahal was also closed to visitors during the Vance family’s visit to India in April.
U.S. Vice-President JD Vance and his family, including wife Usha Vance, visit the Taj Mahal on April 23, 2025, in Agra, India.
Kenny Holston / Getty Images
They are also not the only high-status American family in the political sphere to receive this type of treatment.
When then-Democratic vice-president Al Gore, a presidential candidate, paddled down the Connecticut River for a photo opportunity in 1999, utility officials had opened a dam and released four billion gallons of water to raise the river’s level.
That request, too, came after a review of the area by the Secret Service — and Gore also experienced political pushback.
— With files from The Associated Press