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UK Group Thinks They've Really Stuck It to JD Vance With Van Stunt

Dmitri Bolt
Dmitri Bolt  |  August 13, 2025 6:00 PM

Vice President JD Vance is currently visiting the Cotswolds in the U.K., a trip that has provoked public protests, including a truck circulating the area displaying a viral JD Vance meme.

The protests were sparked for two main reasons, the first being the general disruption of the usually quiet Oxfordshire village of Dean. For security reasons, there have been several road closures, security checkpoints have been established with frequent vehicle inspections, sniffer dogs have been deployed, and Vance travels in a large motorcade. The locals described it as excessive and disruptive to their daily lives. 

The second reason, and the root cause of the van driving around picturing the JD Vance meme, is because of a comment the vice president made criticizing the so-called right to free speech in the U.K., which is practically nonexistent. Vance said he did not want to see the UK to go down the "very dark path" of censorship.

He has not been so delicate in the past.

While protesters in the UK may find a goofy depiction of JD Vance an act of free speech, they have yet to make a convincing case. Making fun of the American vice president is not the same as having an anti-migrant view, burning the Quran, or engaging in what the UK government deems "hateful" behavior. 

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Just last month, the UK began having its law enforcement officers monitor "anti-migrant posts" on social media. 

One man was investigated for liking a limerick in 2024. They described it not as a criminal investigation, but as a "non-crime hate incident." This is increasingly becoming the policy of UK law enforcement. The public is encouraged to report these "non-crime hate incidents," and an officer even admitted, "we need to check that you are thinking properly." And that means you must share the opinion of the government.

This week, UK police also deployed undercover female officers posing as joggers in form-fitting clothing to prompt catcalls and other forms of street harassment. Offenders were stopped and issued warnings, on the rationale that those who engage in catcalling “may go on to commit more serious offenses.” While the prevention of harassment is an important objective, the approach appears to focus more on hypothetical future conduct than on concrete incidents.

But if a citizen can make fun of the United States' Vice President, who the UK government certainly does not like, that must mean that free speech is alive and well, right?