Thursday on FNC’s “Fox & Friends,” Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) addressed the threats of violence aimed at U.S. Supreme Court justices should Roe v. Wade get overturned.
With activists protesting outside of justices’ homes, Paul suggested the leaker was “trying to foment violence.” He urged protesters to “calm down” and be civil instead of engaging in disorderly conduct.
“As someone who has experienced a lot of it when I was mobbed with my wife by over 100 people in D.C., I had six ribs broken in a politically motivated, cowardly attack from behind. I was with Steve Scalise on the ballfield when he was shot, so, yes, I have been there. I’ve seen political violence up close,” Paul outlined. “And this is why it is not just a breach of decorum that they leaked this Roe decision early. This is really about somebody instigating and trying to foment violence, and I’m very concerned about our Supreme Court justices. And I think it’s important for people to know — look, I am as stalwart a defender of the First Amendment as anyone, but disorderly conduct is not protected by the First Amendment. You have no right to chant and keep people awake all night in the neighborhood. I think you are invading their privacy; you’re invading their private property. Even if you stand on the sidewalk, you do not have a right to keep people awake all night, and you should be arrested for disorderly conduct.”
“And it was a huge error whoever did this, and whatever clerk did this, or whatever person at the Supreme Court did this, not only should they be fired, I think they should be prosecuted, and they should be barred from practicing law,” he added. “This is a serious offense.”
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