Upon news that plans have changed for Vice President Vance’s family trip to Vermont, the VTGOP Chairman Paul Dame issued the following statement:

“Everyone who lives in Vermont or has ever visited our state knows that it is a special and beautiful place. We should all be honored that the Vice President had chosen to bring his family to Vermont knowing that he had many other options available. It should have been celebrated as an opportunity for us all to show off what is best about both our landscape and our people.

Many celebrities have visited Vermont, and some live here permanently, and I’ve always believed part of it was because Vermonters value and respect each other’s right to privacy and try not to make a big deal about much of anything. So I was incredibly disappointed to find that a handful of protesters have caused the Vice President to change his plans. That is not the picture of the generous and welcoming Vermont that I grew up with, but instead demonstrated an approach that I found too petty and small to represent the state I call home.

Vermont is a great place to raise a family, and it’s a wonderful place to spend time as a family on vacation. I regret that the Vice President, his wife and his children are facing the kind of opposition that I find inappropriate for such a purely personal visit.

This is why the Vermont Republican Party is launching an online “Welcome Card” that we are asking any Vermonter to sign to show that, whether you like the Vice President or not, he and his family - and every family are welcome in our state. The online “Welcome Card” will be open through Monday, at which point I will print out a copy of the signers and send it along with some Vermont Maple Syrup back to the White House thanking the Vice President for his visit and encouraging him and his family to return to Vermont for future family trips.”

Anyone can sign the petition thanking the Vance family for their visit, and welcoming them to come back to Vermont in the future.

A link to the petition can be found here: https://www.vtgop.org/welcomevance/