A small group of beer-swilling protesters gathered outside Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R., Ky.) Washington, D.C. home Friday morning, chanting "I like beer" in opposition to Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
The unusual scene came on the morning of a cloture vote on Kavanaugh's contentious confirmation, which has been upended by accusations of sexual misconduct in the past three weeks. Kavanaugh has strongly denied the allegations, and a recently wrapped FBI report showed no corroborating evidence for the charges against him.
Protesters swarmed the Capitol building on Thursday in anger over the FBI report and Kavanaugh's potential confirmation, and some directed their ire on Friday at McConnell, who has stood behind Kavanaugh throughout the process.
MSNBC reporter Kasie Hunt tweeted at 7:54 a.m., "there are people drinking PBR from red Solo cups outside Mitch McConnell’s house at this early hour. They are chanting 'I like beer.'"
PBR stands for Pabst Blue Ribbon, a cheap lager beer.
She added coyly later that a "promised keg did not materialize." The protests were a reference to the beer-drinking habits of a teenaged Kavanaugh and what his opponents say undermines his claim he did not sexually assault Christine Blasey Ford or commit other allegations of misconduct. Kavanaugh acknowledged during a Senate Judiciary Committee that he enjoys the beverage, repeating the phrase "I like beer" multiple times.
There are people drinking PBR from red Solo cups outside Mitch McConnell’s house at this early hour. They are chanting 'I like beer."
— Kasie Hunt (@kasie) October 5, 2018
The promised keg did not materialize. https://t.co/Y9nvLuvGw5
— Kasie Hunt (@kasie) October 5, 2018
Another video captured a small ground of protesters clutching PBR cans and singing, "What do you do with a drunken justice, what do you do with a drunken justice, what do you do with a confirmation early in the morning? Chug, Chug, Chug, Chug."
It was unclear if the participants were intoxicated.
"What do we do with a drunken justice?" Protesters stage Kavanaugh confirmation kegger outside Mitch McConnell's home in advance of cloture vote #StopKavanaugh #CANCELKAVANAUGH pic.twitter.com/Ngd7masOck
— L.A. Kauffman (@LAKauffman) October 5, 2018
Kavanaugh's confirmation is still up in the air, with some key lawmakers still not having made their decision. Senate Democrats need to flip two Republicans and get unanimous opposition in their caucus to stop him from reaching the Supreme Court.