Sen. Rand Paul, accompanied by his wife Kelley, was attacked by a mob of protesters in the street of Washington, D.C. as he exited the Republican National Convention on Thursday night.
This is not an uncommon scene as protesters have stormed U.S. cities for months in the name of racial justice as a result of the deaths at the hands of police, such as George Floyd and others that were soon to follow.
The Washington, D.C. crowd that NPR calls a “peaceful protest” was anything but as Paul encountered death threats and acts of violence from what he estimates to be around 100 protesters, which required a police barricade to safely escort him to his hotel.
One protester shouted,“We’ve got Rand Paul trapped!” when Paul was seen surrounded by several protesters. They were violent toward the Pauls and the police officers, as one video of the incident shows Paul being shoved by a protester and another shows a police officer being shoved and knocked down.
Paul and his wife ended up safely making it back to their hotel after a prolonged deuter. He credits the police officers for "literally saving our lives from a crazed mob."
The protesters shouted that they wanted justice and to “say her name”, a chant made to create awareness for Breonna Taylor, who was killed as a result of a no-knock-warrant. Taylor died in Paul’s state of Kentucky and protesters felt this made Paul subject to criticism.
However, protesters were naive in their targeting of Paul as he has said Taylor’s name more than just about anyone else, he told Fox News. He was the author of the “Justice for Breonna Taylor Act” that was created in order to end no-knock-warrants, like the one that resulted in Taylor’s death, after Paul met with her family..
“I have authored or co-sponsored over 20 criminal justice reform bills, and I did it well before it was an acceptable thing to do in my party,” Paul told Fox News. “The cause of reform has no greater GOP ally than me, and yet know-nothing mobs angrily chanted and attacked me and my wife.”