Police say protest outside Hawley home not ‘that big of a deal’

Police on Tuesday said that protestors who gathered outside of Sen. Josh Hawley’s (R-Mo.) Virginia home Monday evening were peaceful and left after officers explained local picketing laws, contradicting Hawley who said protesters had threatened his family and “vandalized” his door.

Juan Vazquez, spokesman for the Vienna Police Department, said the “people were peaceful,” reports The Associated Press.

Protesters gathered outside Hawley’s Northern Virginia home on Monday in response to his announcement that he would be opposing President-elect Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory.

According to Vazquez, the protesters had violated laws on picketing in front of a house, a town ordinance on noise, and a littering code. According to the police officer, “everyone just left” after their violations were explained to them.

“There were no issues, no arrests,” said Vazquez. “We didn’t think it was that big of a deal.”

Hawley tweeted on Monday: “Tonight while I was in Missouri, Antifa scumbags came to our place in DC and threatened my wife and newborn daughter, who can’t travel. They screamed threats, vandalized, and tried to pound open our door. Let me be clear: My family & I will not be intimidated by leftwing violence.”

Tonight while I was in Missouri, Antifa scumbags came to our place in DC and threatened my wife and newborn daughter, who can’t travel. They screamed threats, vandalized, and tried to pound open our door. Let me be clear: My family & I will not be intimidated by leftwing violence

— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) January 5, 2021

Multiple videos of the demonstration showed protesters chanting “due diligence has been done, Biden-Harris has won” on the street in front of the senator’s home. At one point, several protesters with signs walk up to the door and ring the doorbell as one of them speaks over a megaphone.

The group that organized the protest was ShutDownDC, a protest organizing group. In a tweet, the group said, “We visited Senator Hawley’s house for around 30 minutes. We sang songs, chanted and shared our stories. A small group of people delivered a copy of the constitution to his door (with Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution dog eared for easy reference).”

2. We visited Senator Hawley’s house for around 30 minutes. We sang songs, chanted and shared our stories. A small group of people delivered a copy of the constitution to his door (with Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution dog eared for easy reference).

— ShutDownDC (@ShutDown_DC) January 5, 2021

The objection from Hawley and a dozen other GOP senators has been met with scorn by lawmakers on both side of the aisle. Their objection will not change the outcome of the presidential election and has been regarded by some as a “protest vote.”