{"id":2418,"date":"2026-07-08T11:38:20","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T11:38:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418"},"modified":"2026-07-08T11:38:20","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T11:38:20","slug":"catsonacouch-instagram-creator-sues-after-being-barred-from-jd-vance-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418","title":{"rendered":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Amanda McGonigle, who runs the Instagram account @catsonacouch, was waiting to attend a vice presidential event in Bangor, Maine, when five armed Secret Service agents approached her in line. She was denied entrance to the venue by authorities who told her, \u201cwe know where you stand,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Read more The number of job titles that involve AI, even outside the tech world, is surging<\/a><\/p>\n

That\u2019s according to a lawsuit McGonigle Tuesday against the Office of the President and the Secret Service. She alleges the Trump administration violated her First Amendment rights by prohibiting her from attending events where Vice President JD Vance was speaking, due to her online criticism of the administration.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

McGonigle, 37, is the self-described Vance troll behind the @catsonacouch account. The \u201cpetty cat account\u201d has almost 2 million followers and \u201cexists purr-ly to troll the current administration & have more followers than J.D. Vance,\u201d according to its Instagram.<\/p>\n

The creator launched the account in 2024, after Vance derided Kamala Harris and other Democrats as \u201cchildless cat ladies\u201d in 2021. In his new memoir, Vance called the statement \u201cone of the dumbest things I ever said.\u201c<\/p>\n

McGonigle\u2019s account has trolled Vance with a variety of gimmicks, from sharing memes about him getting intimate with a couch, to printing out mock \u201cWanted\u201d posters depicting him as a suspect in the death of Pope Francis. She also uses the account to engage in mutual aid efforts with her followers, which she calls her \u201cpetty besties.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s absurd that the Secret Service is wasting their time tracking a satirical cat account on social media,\u201d McGonigle said in a Tuesday statement released by the ACLU, who represents her.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

On May 14, McGonigle registered to attend an event in Bangor, Maine, where Vance was set to speak on the Trump administration\u2019s efforts to combat healthcare fraud. The vice president was accompanied by acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling.<\/p>\n

According to her lawsuit, McGonigle complied with all advance guidance for guests provided by the Executive Office of the President before attending the event. She received confirmation directly from Vance\u2019s office and event materials carrying the White House seal, but at the event was told by Secret Service that it was private, she said.<\/p>\n

Read more Democratic rising stars who spoke at the party\u2019s 2024 convention keep losing<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cEvery single sign pointed to this being a public event,\u201d McGonigle said in a May Instagram post. \u201cEither it was a public event as advertised, and I was denied entry because I think J.D. Vance is a sentient jar of mayonnaise, or it was a private event and taxpayer dollars were being used to fund J.D. Vance\u2019s little \u2018safe space.\u2019 Either way, it\u2019s giving lawsuit vibes.\u201d<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t the first time McGonigle has been turned away from a vice-presidential event, according to her lawsuit filed Tuesday. She was stopped from attending a Vance event in Iowa after registering but never receiving confirmation that she could attend, she alleges.<\/p>\n

McGonigle\u2019s suit notes she will try to attend more of Vance\u2019s public events in the coming weeks and \u201cexpress her views as an audience member, including by cheering, booing, and wearing clothing with political messages.\u201d At the event in Maine, McGonigle said she wore a shirt saying, \u201cJ.D. Vance cured my imposter syndrome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her lawsuit argues there\u2019s \u201ca credible threat that Ms. McGonigle will be excluded from such events\u201d and could face criminal charges without court intervention. The content creator is asking the court to bar the Trump administration from blocking her from any future events.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cThe First Amendment cannot be revoked just because one of the country\u2019s most powerful people can\u2019t take a joke,\u201d said ACLU of Maine staff attorney Anahita Sotoohi. <\/p>\n

The White House and the Secret Service did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n

Read more Chinese men in Germany used Telegram groups to share rape videos and drugging tips, prosecutors say<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amanda McGonigle, who runs the Instagram account @catsonacouch, was waiting to attend a vice presidential event in Bangor, Maine, when five armed Secret Service agents approached her in line.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-news"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Amanda McGonigle, who runs the Instagram account @catsonacouch, was waiting to attend a vice presidential event in Bangor, Maine, when five armed Secret Service agents approached her in line.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Trusted Moving Group\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa\"},\"headline\":\"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418\"},\"wordCount\":670,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"U.S. news\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418\",\"name\":\"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?p=2418#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Trusted Moving Group\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/trustedmovinggroups.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group","og_description":"Amanda McGonigle, who runs the Instagram account @catsonacouch, was waiting to attend a vice presidential event in Bangor, Maine, when five armed Secret Service agents approached her in line.","og_url":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418","og_site_name":"Trusted Moving Group","article_published_time":"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/#\/schema\/person\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa"},"headline":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event","datePublished":"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418"},"wordCount":670,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp","articleSection":["U.S. news"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418","url":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418","name":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event - Trusted Moving Group","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp","datePublished":"2026-07-08T11:38:20+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/#\/schema\/person\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/3af91a93f1ced0cf0d35ded2b5213ba6.webp","width":1200,"height":630},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=2418#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"\u2018CatsOnACouch\u2019 Instagram creator sues after being barred from JD Vance event"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/","name":"Trusted Moving Group","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/#\/schema\/person\/98cd83efb686ecde03e082abca618eaa","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com"],"url":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2418"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2418\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2417"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}