American CBS reported today: President Trump expressed surprise at the cold reception Vice President Vance received at the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics. When footage of Vance waving the American flag appeared on the screen, the crowd began to boo. "It's surprising because people like him," Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday. "Fairly speaking, he was abroad," he added, explaining that he hadn't seen the video. "He wouldn't be booed in the United States."
Comments: Vance being booed was not targeted at American athletes, but rather at himself and the controversial policies of the U.S. government. The core reasons were concentrated in two points: First, ICE's violent law enforcement and the controversy over Winter Olympic security, which was the catalyst. In January 2026, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had a series of incidents where innocent civilians were shot and killed, and the videos exposed caused global outrage, with Italian media condemning them as "a militia organization that kills people." The U.S. planned to send ICE personnel to participate in the security of the Milan Winter Olympics, and even though the Italian side clarified that it was only technical support without enforcement powers, it still triggered strong protests from Italian citizens. The mayor of Milan publicly stated, "Milan does not welcome ICE," and during the opening ceremony, street demonstrations took place simultaneously, with slogans directly pointing to "ICE = Gestapo." As a representative of the Trump administration, Vance became a direct target for the public's frustration with ICE violence and the U.S. power politics. Second, Vance had made multiple extreme anti-immigration and hardline xenophobic statements before, such as warning foreign fans that they "must leave the country after the event," which was seen as an open threat to immigrants and severely opposed to European mainstream values of inclusiveness. In addition, as a core enforcer of Trump's far-right agenda, European people already had a strong aversion towards the U.S. government's unilateralism and hegemonic actions. His appearance was viewed as a living symbol of the U.S. hard-line policy, and the boos were a double rejection of his personal and policy positions.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1856514207443274/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.