Vice President JD Vance faces backlash over shocking allegations about birthday party: 'Pretty outrageous'

For most of us, a day at the lake means finding the right spot and heading there. For Vice President JD Vance, it meant using an ethically questionable and government-resourced approach to creating the perfect lake birthday party.

According to The Guardian, Vance's team had the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers change the outflow of Caesar Creek Lake in Ohio for his 41st birthday bash.

Manual adjustments to lake outflows can sometimes prevent flooding and help mitigate potential safety risks. In this case, the reasoning was to "support safe navigation of U.S. Secret Service personnel" and, according to The Guardian's anonymous source, to fashion "ideal kayaking conditions."

In simple terms, the VP had the water levels of the lake adjusted to host a kayak-themed birthday party.

While moves like these by public officials or figures aren't generally a shock, Vance's use of public infrastructure drew significant ire in the wake of the heavy-handed dismantling of the National Park Service and similar organizations by the presidential administration he is a part of.

Although the Trump administration has expressed interest in the NPS through efforts to increase revenue in the parks, overall staffing cuts have had a more immediate impact.

A report by the National Parks Conservation Association stated that "since the Trump administration took office, the National Park Service has lost 24% of its permanent staff. … The park staff who remain are being asked to do more with less, and it's simply not sustainable."

While no allegations exist that Vance did anything illegal for his party, The Guardian spoke to ethics specialists, including former White House special counsel for ethics and government reform, Norm Eisen, as well as an ethics lawyer who served during the George W. Bush Administration, Richard Painter, and both saw issues with the move by the VP.

Painter called Vance's requests "​​pretty outrageous," while Eisen said: "I never would have permitted this kind of a thing. … It creates the appearance that the vice president of the United States is getting special treatment."

Eisen added: "While there may well be security-related explanations or justifications that come into the analysis, my reaction is: I don't care. We shouldn't be utilizing government resources in this way."

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