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1,000 protesters greet Mitch McConnell at Kentucky speech

Posted at 12:53 PM, Feb 21, 2017
and last updated 2017-02-21 12:53:26-05

LAWRENCEBURG, Ky. (AP) — Nearly a thousand people have crowded behind a chain link fence to try to catch Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s attention as he made his first stop on a tour of Kentucky during the congressional recess.

The protesters on Tuesday chanted, “No ban, no wall, Mitch McConnell take our call,” a reference to the senator’s clogged voicemail system during the first month of Donald Trump’s presidency.

The Anderson County Chamber of Commerce luncheon Tuesday is the first of several events where McConnell is scheduled to speak. Demonstrators promised to follow him to each stop.

Thirty-two-year-old Robert Brown uses a wheelchair because of spina bifida. He joined the crowd to protest McConnell’s vow to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

McConnell arrived at noon and was greeted inside with a standing ovation.