“The View” co-hosts have little sympathy for Justice Brett Kavanaugh after protesters targeted him while he was dining.
Last week, demonstrators found out that Kavanaugh was dining at Morton’s location in downtown Washington, D.C., showed up outside, and demanded that the manager kick the justice out, as IJR reported. Kavanaugh reportedly left through a backdoor before dessert was served.
The group ShutDownDC tweeted, ”We hear Kavanaugh snuck out the back with his security detail. [Morton’s] should be ashamed for welcoming a man who so clearly hates women.”
While the demonstrators’ decision to forgo decency and allow public officials some time to eat in peace generated some outrage, the panel on ”The View” had a different view of the incident.
During a segment on Monday, co-host Ana Navarro addressed the incident as she said, ”As far as Brett Kavanaugh, let me take out my little violin.”
“As long as there’s no violence, as long as there’s no harassment, I think the freedom to protest… is a sacred American right,” she continued. ”And look, I think it is incredibly important that the justices, that the people in elected office, realize just how angry so much of America is.”
She urged Americans who are upset about the decision overturning Roe v. Wade to ”channel that anger in the ballot box.”
Watch the exchange below:
Despite the death threats to the justices and the attempt on his life by a leftist extremist, Sunny Hostin scoffs at Kavanaugh's concern of the crowd.
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) July 11, 2022
She called it "terrible hypocrisy" and "ridiculous" for him and his family to leave through the back door of the restaurant. pic.twitter.com/5SLbGqmzOo
Co-host Sunny Hostin chimed in to claim that there is ”terrible hypocrisy” from people who are outraged about the decision because Kavanaugh reportedly did not have contact with the protesters.
She then pointed out that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg argued public officials should expect protests.
Americans do have a right to protest peacefully, and public officials should not be immune from protests.
However, part of the issue is not just that the demonstrators were targeting Kavanaugh, but that their actions were affecting the restaurant and the other diners who did not vote to overturn Roe and may not even like Kavanaugh.
As a representative for the restaurant put in a statement, ”Honorable Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh and all of our other patrons at the restaurant were unduly harassed by unruly protestors while eating dinner at our Morton’s restaurant.”
“Politics, regardless of your side or views, should not trample the freedom at play of the right to congregate and eat dinner. There is a time and place for everything. Disturbing the dinner of all of our customers was an act of selfishness and void of decency,” the statement added.
Not every business wants to take a side in politics, nor should they have to.
But protesting public officials at restaurants can launch the business into the middle of a controversy. It forces them to answer questions such as: Do they let Kavanaugh stay? Do they ask him to leave? Do they put out a statement? Do they support the protests?
For every one of those questions, any move could set off a firestorm that could anger half the country and hurt their business.
So yes, public officials should not be immune from protests. But anger at their decisions should not fling open the doors for protesters to trample on the norms of decency when it comes to dining that most Americans expect.