By Ty’rique Sims, Special to the AFRO
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to leave a Virginia restaurant last Friday night because of her work with President Trump and Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings is defending her.
“Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for @POTUS and I politely left. Her actions say far more about her than about me,” Sanders wrote on Twitter. “I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so.”
Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., came to the defense of White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders after she was refused service at a restaurant. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
The owner of the Red Hen, Stephanie Wilkinson quickly responded to Sanders’ tweet stating that she would do it again and saying that people need to live in their convictions.
Surprisingly, Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings, who has been a staunch critic of this administration, came to the defense of Sanders.
“First of all, I think, as far as the restaurant incident, I think the restaurant owner should have served her. I really do,” Cummings said on Face the Nation on Sunday.
Cummings pointed out that much of the blame for the lack of respect in the current political climate starts with President Donald Trump.
“I think President Trump has created this. Since he’s become president, even before, he’s basically given people license to state things that are ugly and those things then turn into actions, as we can now see. We’ve got to get away from this and we’ve got to concentrate on what is important at this moment.”
In contrast to Cummings, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) on Saturday urged people to confront members of the Trump administration where ever they are. “Let’s make sure we show up wherever we have to show up,” she said at a rally. “And if you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them. And you tell them they’re not welcome anymore, anywhere. We’ve got to get the children connected to their parents.”
In response to Waters, on Monday Rep. Nancy Pelosi wrote on Twitter, “In the crucial months ahead, we must strive to make America beautiful again. Trump’s daily lack of civility has provoked responses that are predictable but unacceptable. As we go forward, we must conduct elections in a way that achieves unity from sea to shining sea.”