At a recent press gaggle in Azerbaijan, Vice President JD Vance gave stern advice to athletes who want to speak out over the current state of the country, suggesting that they should keep their politics to themselves.
When asked by a reporter how he feels about President Donald Trump insulting freestyle skier Hunter Hess for saying he had mixed feelings about what it means to represent the United States, Vance had quite a lot to say.
“Yes, you’re going to have some Olympic athletes who pop off about politics. I feel like that happens every Olympics. My advice to them would be to try to bring the country together. And when you’re representing the country, you’re representing Democrats and Republicans. You’re there to play a sport, and you’re there to represent your country and hopefully win a medal. You’re not there to pop off about politics.”
Vance continued, “so when Olympic athletes enter the political arena, they should expect some pushback. But most Olympic athletes, whatever their politics, are doing a great job and certainly enjoy the support of the entire country. And I think they recognize that the way to bring the country together is not to show up in a foreign country and attack the president of the United States, but to play your sport and represent the country well.”
Vance Wants Olympic Athletes To ‘Bring The Country Together’
Vance, like many others on his side of the aisle, expressed disapproval of athletes exercising their First Amendment right and expressing their concerns about the country under the current administration.
However, Olympic athletes are not government employees. They are not mouthpieces for the administration of the day. They are citizens—citizens who have trained their entire lives to compete on the world stage, and citizens who, like the rest of us, have the right to speak their minds about the country they represent. The First Amendment is not null and void just because someone participates in the Olympic games.
Vance advised athletes to “bring the country together.” But the real question is: together around what? Around silence? Around the idea that patriotism means never criticizing the people in charge?
That is not unity. That is obedience.
The irony is hard to miss. This is an administration whose political brand is built on insult, grievance, and provocation. President Trump has spent his second term routinely attacking anyone who criticizes or disagrees with him, including—but not limited to—Democrats, immigrants, journalists, judges, and even members of his own party. And just days ago, he shared a now-deleted video on Truth Social depicting former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as monkeys.
So the message from the White House seems to be: the president can make inflammatory and demeaning posts about anyone he doesn’t like, but a freestyle skier expressing “mixed feelings” about representing the country is somehow unacceptable and deserving of condemnation.
That is not a standard. It’s a double standard.
