JD Vance did not exactly receive a warm welcome at Union Station in Washington DC. On Wednesday, August 20, Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller walked through the station for a photo op involving Shake Shack hamburgers. As they did so, protesters told the vice president to “go f— a couch.”
In several clips shared on social media, protesters could be heard booing and heckling the trio. In a video shared on X, one heckler could be heard saying, “Oh look, it’s couch-f—er! You gonna f— a couch, buddy?” (per the New Republic).
Other hecklers focused more on how President Donald Trump deployed National Guard troops to patrol the city, chanting things like “Free DC!” (per the Guardian).
Vance, Hegseth, and Miller were at the station to give Shake Shack hamburgers to the troops deployed by Trump. During the photo op, Vance said they have “brought some law and order back.” Telling the troops that he “appreciates” them, Vance added, “You guys bust your a– all day and we give you hamburgers — not a fair trade, but we’re grateful for everything you do.”
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… no one likes JD Vance.
— Jo (@JoJoFromJerz) August 20, 2025
No one. 😂pic.twitter.com/kfUCt6csHm
Vance and Miller were both dismissive of the protesters and acted like they had no reason to be upset about the Trump administration exerting federal control over DC. According to the Independent, Miller called the hecklers “stupid white hippies” and “crazy communists.”
He went on to say that they would “ignore” the protesters because they “all need to go home and take a nap.” Both Miller and Vance made comments about the age of the people in the crowd. According to Miller, they were “all over 90 years old.” Similarly, Vance said the protesters were “a bunch of old, primarily white people.” He used this to dismiss their concerns about the deployment of the National Guard.
“It’s kind of bizarre that we have a bunch of old, primarily white people who are out there protesting the policies that keep people safe when they’ve never felt danger in their entire lives,” Vance said.
It is certainly not the first time people have booed Vance. In July, protesters heckled him when he traveled to California. He appeared to have a similar experience in Indiana. During his trip to the UK, musician Dolly Mavies walked out of a gig after learning Vance would be there.
