Ted Cruz's dinner was gatecrashed by protesters against Brett Kavanaugh

Nothing like a side of heckling to make you leave dinner.
 By 
Shannon Connellan
 on 
Ted Cruz's dinner was gatecrashed by protesters against Brett Kavanaugh
Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Ted Cruz shakes hands with Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh in Cruz's office in Washington, DC. Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

If Ted Cruz thought his Monday night dinner was going to be quiet, uninterrupted affair, he thought wrong.

The Texas senator was forced to leave a restaurant in Washington D.C., in a scene all too familiar to Department of Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.

Protesters entered Fiola, an upscale Italian restaurant, seemingly opposed to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, and heckled Cruz and his wife.

Apparently an "old friend" of Kavanaugh's, Cruz sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee who will decide his fate as a Supreme Court nominee.

Kavanaugh is facing multiple accusations of sexual assault and misconduct, which prompted women's rights organizations to run a national walkout on Monday in solidarity with survivors.

In a video posted on Monday night by Smash Racism DC, the group of activists can be heard chanting the words, "we believe survivors," referring to people who have experienced sexual abuse.

"While our interruption does not compare in scale to the interruptions his actions as a Senator have had on millions of American lives, we hope that it reminds Cruz and others like him that they are not safe from the people they have hurt," Smash Racism DC wrote in a tweet.

"This is a message to Ted Cruz, [Brett] Kavanaugh, Donald Trump and the rest of the racist, sexist, transphobic, and homophobic right-wing scum: You are not safe. We will find you. We will expose you. We will take from you the peace you have taken from so many others."

In another video posted by the same Twitter account, a woman who describes herself as a survivor of sexual assault and a constituent of Cruz's asks him: "Do you believe in survivors? We believe survivors. Senator, I have a right to know what your position is on Brett Kavanaugh."

Cruz's dinner wasn't the only site of protest, either. NBC affiliate KXAN reported that survivors of sexual assault had protested outside Cruz's office on Monday, in support of Kavanaugh accusers Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez. 

Kavanaugh's nomination was originally opposed by Cruz, although many including the Texas Tribune have noted his changing attitude.

Cruz was also the committee member who suggested Ford testify in public.

"These allegations are serious and deserve to be treated with respect," Cruz said in a statement, published by the Tribune.

"Professor Ford should have a full opportunity to tell her story before the Judiciary Committee, and Judge Kavanaugh should have a full opportunity to defend himself. That hearing should be sooner, rather than later, so the committee can make the best assessment possible of the allegations."

Ford will testify against Kavanaugh in an open hearing on Thursday, CNN reports.

A photo portrait of a journalist with blonde hair and a band t-shirt.
Shannon Connellan
UK Editor

Shannon Connellan is Mashable's UK Editor based in London, formerly Mashable's Australia Editor, but emotionally, she lives in the Creel House. A Tomatometer-approved critic, Shannon writes about entertainment, tech, social good, science, culture, and Australian horror.

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