On Thursday, as Senators read through the report from the FBI background investigation into Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, thousands of protesters gathered outside the Supreme Court in large numbers for a “Cancel Kavanaugh” march organized by the group behind the Women’s March, among other groups.
After a demonstration with signs, chanting, speeches, and songs, the crowd moved to the Capitol and to the Hart Senate Office Building, where they entered the atrium and began chanting and calling for legislators to reject Kavanaugh’s nomination. According to Time reporter Charlotte Alter, hundreds were arrested—in a peaceful, polite way.
Among those arreested was comedian Amy Schumer, who, in a video posted by conservative writer Benny Johnson, can be seen saying “yes” when police asked her if she wanted to be arrested. In the video, she is holding a “We believe Anita Hill” sign.
In another video posted to Twitter, she addressed a fan and fellow activist’s daughter. “Hi Zola, I’m here with your mom. She loves you very much,” she said. “I think we are going to get arrested and we’re so proud of you.”
Before they entered Hart, the demonstrators had gathered outside to chant and listen to speeches and songs.
It wasn’t long after the demonstration reached Hart that the crowd seemed to overwhelm the space.
Meanwhile, outside the Capitol building Thursday, a different feminist group had set up a giant screen dedicated to showing, on a loop, the 2005 “Access Hollywood” tape in which Donald Trump bragged that his fame allowed him to “grab them by the pussy.” According to Roll Call, the video will air for 12 hours.
It wasn’t the only one. A super PAC for Democratic candidates called American Bridge 21st Century plans to show a loop outside the Trump International Hotel on Thursday night, according to HuffPost.
The video has recirculated during the public discussion of sexual misconduct allegations by a prominent political figure in part because Trump himself has reminded the public of the allegations against him. At a press conference last week at the United Nations, when asked about his own history of being accused of sexual misconduct by more than a dozen women and how it influences the way he views Kavanaugh’s accusations, Trump didn’t dodge the question. “Well, it does impact my opinion. You know why? Because I’ve had a lot of false charges made against me,” he said. “So when I see it, I view it differently than somebody sitting at home watching television.”
On Tuesday, Trump, who has been steadfast in his support for his nominee, told reporters that it was a “very scary time for young men in America.”
The Senate will hold a procedural vote on Kavanaugh’s nomination Friday, and a final vote could happen as early as Saturday. To defeat the nomination, Democrats would need every Senator in their party and two Republicans to vote against him. Given the comments by two of the three Republican swing votes, things are not looking promising for anti-Kavanaugh protesters.
