Protesters Disrupt Ted Cruz's Dinner With Heckling And Chants

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Ted Cruz and his wife were forced out of an Italian restaurant Monday afternoon after a group of protesters demanded his stance on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh who stands accused of sexual misconduct by two different women. The protesters can be heard chanting "We believe survivors!" inside the restaurant Fiola, according to a video captured by the activist group Smash Racism DC. The video has since been viewed more than 2.4 million times on Twitter alone.

"I'd love to talk with you about Brett Kavanaugh tonight," one protester told Cruz in the video. "I'm a constituent. Love to know what your vote is going to be tonight. I know that you're very close friends with Mr. Kavanaugh. And do you believe survivors, sir?"

The chanting eventually forced Cruz and his wife to leave the restaurant.

"This is a message to Ted Cruz, Brett Kavanaugh, Donald Trump and the rest of the racist, sexist, transphobic, and homophobic right-wing scum: You are not safe. We will find you. We will expose you. We will take from you the peace you have taken from so many others," Smash Racism DC wrote on Facebook along with its video.

The protest was criticized by Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke, who is competing for Cruz's Senate seat.

"Not right that Senator Cruz and his wife Heidi were surrounded and forced to leave a restaurant last night because of protesters. The Cruz family should be treated with respect.," O'Rourke tweeted Tuesday morning.

Kavanaugh, with his wife by his side, told Fox News Monday night, "I'm not going to let false accusations drive us out of this process, and we're looking for a fair process where I can be heard and defend my integrity, my lifelong record."

One of Kavanaugh's accusers, Christine Blasey Ford, a research psychologist in California, is expected to appear Thursday in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, CNBC reported.

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Photo: Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and Democratic U.S. Representative Beto O'Rourke in their first debate for Texas U.S. Senate in McFarlin Auditorium at SMU on September 21, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. Nathan Hunsinger-Pool/Getty Images.