Police arrest nearly two dozen Kavanaugh protesters
#CancelKavanaugh Protesters at the US Senate this morning for a rally against SCOTUS Nominee Kavanaugh. pic.twitter.com/cS78GGfLZZ
— DCnewsvideo (@DCnewsvideo) September 20, 2018
Nearly two dozen protesters opposing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh were arrested on Thursday, as activists occupied the offices of key Republican senators.
Twenty three protestors were removed from the Dirksen Senate Office Building, where they were protesting at Sen. Bob Corker’s (R-Tenn.) office, for unlawful demonstration activities. They are being charged under a D.C. law that forbids protesters from crowding and obstructing hallways and passageways, according to a spokeswoman for the Capitol Police.
{mosads}The protesters chanted “we believe women” as they lined the hallway outside of Corker’s office. Many of them wore buttons that read “I Believe Dr. Christine Blasey Ford,” referring to the woman who has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her in the early 1980s when they were both in high school.
The protesters include activists from a coalition of outside groups, including the Center for Popular Democracy Action and the Women’s March.
The protesters also demonstrated in offices for Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, and Susan Collins (R-Maine), who is considered a pivotal vote on the Trump nominee.
In each of the offices, the demonstrators shared stories of sexual assault and urged Republican senators to oppose Kavanaugh.
After occupying Collins’s offices, the group of protesters went to Sen. Jeff Flake’s (R-Ariz.) office. Like Collins, Flake is considered a potential GOP swing vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination.
Flake, a member of the Judiciary Committee, initially described himself as “inclined” to vote for Kavanaugh but warned leadership this week that he would vote against Kavanaugh if Ford wasn’t given the chance to testify.
Grassley has set a hearing for Monday and invited both Ford and Kavanaugh to testify over her accusations against him. But Ford’s lawyer is calling for the FBI to investigate the incident as a precursor to Kavanaugh testifying.
Grassley has set a 10 a.m. Friday deadline for Ford’s lawyers to let them know if she will appear. If she doesn’t, GOP senators have speculated that Grassley will cancel the hearing and move to vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination as soon as next week.
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