Vice President JD Vance warned U.S. Olympic athletes on Tuesday that they should expect “pushback” if they wade into politics, defending President Donald Trump’s public criticism of freestyle halfpipe skier Hunter Hess after Hess said he had “mixed emotions” about representing the United States “right now.”
“You’re not there to pop off about politics,” Vance told reporters Feb. 11 while traveling back from an overseas trip in which he led the U.S. delegation to the 2026 Winter Olympics. “So when Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback.”
The dispute began after Hess said, “There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of,” adding: “Wearing the flag doesn’t mean I represent everything that’s going on in the U.S.”
Trump responded by calling Hess “a real loser,” prompting the skier to say on social media: “I love my country… but there are always things that could be better.” Hess added that the U.S. is “amazing” because Americans have the freedom to say so.
Vance acknowledged politics has long intruded on the Games, but argued Olympians should aim to represent the country in a way that brings Americans together.
Watch the clip below:
VP Vance on disgraced Olympic athlete Hunter Hess who said he was ashamed to represent the US:
“When you’re representing the country, you’re representing Republicans and Democrats.
You’re there to play a sport, and you’re there to represent your country, and hopefully win a… pic.twitter.com/iYBqtmisRw
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) February 11, 2026