More Than 70 People Arrested Protesting Kavanaugh Hearing, Celebrities Included

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President Donald Trump isn’t popular. Forty to forty-five percent of the public saying they approve of the job he’s doing is a “high” for him — and concurrently, his attempts to stack the U.S. court system with judges in his favor haven’t exactly been welcomed with open arms by the general populace. On Wednesday, the second day of confirmations for his U.S. Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh, U.S. Capitol Police have now revealed that they arrested a whopping 73 people throughout the day.

Sixty-six of the apprehended demonstrators were inside the Committee room in the Hart Senate Office Building, where the contentious hearings are actually taking place. Six of the demonstrators police picked up were demonstrating in the Russell Senate Office Building, where a large number of U.S. Senators’ D.C. offices actually are. Additionally, police apprehended one additional demonstrator in the Hart building’s atrium, charging them with unlawful crowding/restricting and resisting arrest.

The total number of apprehended demonstrators is slightly higher than the number police picked up on Tuesday, the first day of Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, when they apprehended 70 demonstrators. On Tuesday, those arrested included prominent activist Linda Sarsour and actress Piper Perabo, who has appeared in Covert Affairs — among other things — for which she received a Golden Globes nomination.

She told Vice News, speaking of the president’s part in his former lawyer Michael Cohen’s illegal pre-2016 elections hush money scheme:

‘I was protesting because this president is an un-indicted co-conspirator in a felony criminal investigation. I believe he should not be allowed to choose a judge until that is resolved.’

Those demonstrators kicked off the hearings themselves with a vocal protest. As Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) attempted to get the hearing underway, protest shouts rang out from among citizen demonstrators — and Senate Democrats, who objected to proceeding without ample time to review thousands of documents covering Kavanaugh’s background.

In the time since, Democrats have continued to make their opposition well known. Among other examples, California’s Kamala Harris turned heads with her questioning suggesting there’s evidence Kavanaugh met with Trump’s own lawyer’s firm to discuss Special Counsel for the Russia investigation Robert Mueller’s continuing probe. The potential Supreme Court justice’s views on matters related to that investigation have come under intense scrutiny, although during his time before Congress this week, he’s dismissed the question of options for a president facing a subpoena as a “hypothetical.”

In reality, there’s a possibility that sometime soon, Mueller slaps the president with a subpoena to compel his testimony. Trump certainly hasn’t been forthcoming so far.

Concurrently, concerned interests have scrutinized Kavanaugh’s views on abortion — and racial justice. Thursday, New Jersey’s Cory Booker released previously “committee confidential” documents on Kavanaugh revealing his past acceptance of racial profiling in law enforcement. He ran afoul of Senate Republicans in so doing, but he attracted the support of some of his colleagues including Illinois’ Richard Durbin and Hawaii’s Mazie Hirono all the same.

At present, these efforts might not amount to Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court actually getting blocked. Republicans remain the majority party in both houses of Congress and subsequently, in all of its committees.

In the meantime, as the questions and issues continue to pile up, President Trump continues to find new ways to pick away at the American experience. He asserted this week that protesting itself should be illegal — yes, really. He told The Daily Caller, just a short while after the Kavanaugh hearings — and their related protests — got underway:

‘I don’t know why they don’t take care of a situation like that. I think it’s embarrassing for the country to allow protesters.’

In other words, the stakes remain high going into the midterms later this year.

Featured Image via YouTube screenshot