Vance Helicopter Golf Runs Draw Secret Service Complaints and Growing Costs

The vice president's recreational travel — including helicopter-ferried golf lessons — has generated internal friction at the Secret Service over staffing costs and logistics, according to reporting published July 16.

Vice President JD Vance has used government helicopter transport for golf outings, adding costs to his protective detail's operations.
Secret Service personnel have reportedly expressed frustration over the staffing demands created by Vance's leisure travel schedule.
The trips fall within legal bounds for vice-presidential travel but have drawn scrutiny over their frequency and expense to taxpayers.
Daily Kos reported July 16 that the complaints reflect broader tension between protective detail resources and the VP's recreational calendar.
No dollar figure has been publicly released by the Secret Service or the Office of the Vice President for the total cost of the outings.

Vice President JD Vance has been using Secret Service helicopter transport for golf outings often enough that personnel assigned to his protective detail have registered complaints about the operational burden, according to a Daily Kos report published July 16, 2026.

The report does not allege illegality. Vice-presidential travel, recreational or otherwise, is routinely covered by government resources. The friction, per the reporting, is internal — staffing deployments, scheduling pressure, and the logistics of rotating agents around a golf lesson tee time.

No breakdown of per-trip costs has been released by the Secret Service or the Office of the Vice President. Helicopter operations for executive-branch principals typically run into the tens of thousands of dollars per flight hour when staff, aircraft, and support personnel are factored in.

The Secret Service declined to comment on internal personnel matters. A spokesperson for the vice president did not immediately respond to a request for comment as of publication.

The trips are legal. The complaints are internal. The helicopter, presumably, is still running.