The Trump administration is facing a major problem, and this time it’s not about someone leaving the White House. No one in the administration can find a place to eat. US Homeland Security Secretary Kristjen Nielsen dinner at a DC restaurant was interrupted by activists and advisor Stephen Miller was heckled at a Mexican restaurant. The latest administration official to be forced out of a restaurant is Press Secretary Sarah Sanders.
Sarah Sanders asked to leave
Early Saturday morning a message from an employee at the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Virginia started to be shared across social media. The employee claimed that Press Secretary Sarah Sanders had come into the restaurant and been asked to leave by the owner. Later that same Saturday Sanders confirmed the incident.
Sanders wrote, “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. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so.”
Former Arkansas Governor and Sander’s Father Mike Huckabee, also voiced his opinion, calling what happened an example of “bigotry.”
A man who claimed to be Sanders’ waiter said that the family was not kicked out or refused service, but was asked to leave.
Red Hen owner speaks out
Lexington is in a county that overwhelming voted for Trump, but the city itself overwhelmingly voted against him. When owner Stephanie Wilkinson first heard that Sanders was at the restaurant, she found it hard to believe and had to drive down to see for herself.
Wilkinson says that she is someone who avoids confirmation, but she believes that Sanders works in service of an “inhumane and unethical” administration and felt that she had to say something. After asking her asking her staff what they would like to see happen, Wilkinson asked Sanders to leave.
When asked to leave Sanders reportedly did so without incident and offered to pay. The number of Yelp one and five-star reviews for the restaurant skyrocketed.
