Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said Friday that he wasn’t worried about a wave of protests across the country against his and President Donald Trump’s agenda.
After accusing Senate Democrats of dragging their feet during the confirmation process of Trump’s Cabinet nominees, “to give their left-wing agitators enough time to get up and get organized,” McConnell was asked at a press briefing directly about protesters.
One reporter asked the majority leader about a trend of Republicans calling protesters “paid,” and whether he encouraged others in his caucus to view protests in that light.
“I can only speak for myself, I’m not afraid of protesters,” McConnell responded. “This is an open country. People have an opportunity to come express themselves. I don’t go down to Lafayette Park every day, but I’m told there’s somebody there protesting something on any given day.”
“Remember the famous Claude Rains line in ‘Casablanca’?” McConnell mused. “‘Gambling in Casablanca?’ Demonstrations in America? It doesn’t bother me. Everybody’s got a right to express themselves. As long as they do it peacefully, I have no problem with it.”