Trump Officials Can No Longer Eat Out in Peace

Chris Kleponis and Ron Sachs/CNP/ZUMA; Cheriss May/NurPhoto/ZUMA

Looking for news you can trust?Subscribe to our free newsletters.

It’s been a rough week for Trump administration officials trying to enjoy a dinner out.
First came the run-in on this past Sunday, when White House adviser Stephen Miller was hounded while eating at DC’s Espita Mezcaleria. According to the New York Post, diners called him a “real-life fascist begging money for new cages.”
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Kirstjen Nielsen was forced to leave Mexican restaurant MXDC after hecklers descended on the Washington eatery shouting, “Shame!” “End family separation!” and “If kids don’t eat in peace, you don’t eat in peace!”
(The New Yorker noted their odd choice of dining venues, given the political optics.)

“If kids don’t eat in peace, you don’t eat in peace!”
Activists with the Metro D.C. Democratic Socialists of America crashed @SecNielsen’s dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Washington, D.C., and heckled her over the Trump administration’s ‘zero-tolerance’ immigration policy. pic.twitter.com/rdb1nu9Trs
— Fox News (@FoxNews) June 21, 2018

A couple of days later, protesters gathered outside Nielsen’s home, blasting the ProPublica audio of detained children crying at an immigration facility.

Protestors are outside of DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s Alexandria townhouse, playing audio of the detained children. She appears to be still be home. pic.twitter.com/akIcxOcM3q
— Philip Lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) June 22, 2018

Then, on Friday night, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to leave The Red Hen, a farm-to-table restaurant in Lexington, Virginia. “I explained the restaurant has certain standards that I feel it has to uphold, such as honesty, and compassion, and cooperation,” the restaurant’s co-owner, Stephanie Wilkinson, told the Washington Post.

Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for @POTUS and I politely left. Her actions say far more about her than about me. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) June 23, 2018

Well, there’s always Chick-fil-A.