Louisiana State Chaplain Dr. Michael Sprague said Monday on Fox Business there was "obviously an agenda" during Sen. Bill Cassidy's (R., La.) town hall last week in Breaux Bridge, La., where liberal protesters yelled throughout the opening prayer and Pledge of Allegiance.
Host Elizabeth MacDonald previewed her interview with Sprague by showing clips from the town hall in which protesters are heckling Sprague during his opening prayer. MacDonald reported that the media and Democrats have called these protests "spontaneous outbursts" from local residents, but she then played leaked audio, obtained by local radio station KPEL, of liberal activists intentionally planning to disrupt Cassidy's town hall on Friday.
"Outside team will join inside team in the hall after media coverage," liberal organizer James Proctor said in the audio. "So what we'll do is try to dominate enough, because remember ... camera people, especially, are looking for b-roll and quotes, b-roll meaning 'ahhhh' people waving signs, quotes, 'we really think it's terrible,' and then they are moving on to the next story."
A female protester said that she was told by Indivisible, an anti-Donald Trump group of which Proctor is a leader of a local branch, and other sources that they should spread throughout the audience to avoid being clumped in one place.
"Game plan number one is to fill as many seats as we can, right? If it's all of us in there and the poor people of Breaux Bridge are sitting behind us, well then tough luck for them," Proctor added. "If we can arrange this so he doesn't hear one sympathetic question, great."
After MacDonald played the audio, she asked Sprague to describe what happened when he delivered the prayer. He told her that many community meetings usually begin with a prayer and Pledge of Allegiance.
"That's what was to happen at this meeting, except many people got there early and obviously there was an agenda, a lot of energy, and I don't think there was any intention to let there be a prayer, the pledge, or the meeting," Sprague said. "People were shouting. People were yelling."
"The crowd walked in and I just saw the energy from the start, and many were angry and there was rage," Sprague added. "Obviously, they wanted to shout and yell. Not everyone, but many or most of the people."
When asked about the leaked audio, Sprague said many of the protesters were from the New Orleans area but were organized and had an agenda to disrupt the town hall. He then predicted that the protesting will backfire and discussed the need for a spiritual awakening.
Cassidy is not the only Republican member of Congress being targeted by such protests, the Daily Caller reported.
Congressional Republicans have faced a wave of hostile town halls in recent weeks, due in part to the work of Indivisible and other leftist groups.
Indivisible recently partnered up with Organizing for Action, the activist group aligned with former President Obama, NBC News reported earlier this month. Additionally, Indivisible announced the formation of a new non-profit, designed to help fund the group's efforts with tax-deductible donations.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was the target of similar protest efforts while on a diplomatic visit to Mexico. Although on foreign soil, that protest was organized by Democrats Abroad Mexico–an official arm of the Democratic Party.