Sarah Sanders Says She Was Kicked Out Of Restaurant Because She Works For Trump
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said she was kicked out of a Virginia restaurant by its owner because she works for President Donald Trump.
"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," Sanders posted on Twitter Saturday.
"Her actions say far more about her than about me," Sanders said. "I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so."
When reached for comment by CNN, Sanders referred to the tweet she posted.
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
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) June 23, 2018
The owner Stephanie Wilkinson told The Washington Post in an interview Saturday that she "would have done the same thing again."
Wilkinson told the Post that she asked Sanders to leave at the request of her staff.
"I explained that the restaurant has certain standards that I feel it has to uphold, such as honesty, and compassion, and cooperation," Wilkinson recalled to The Post of her confrontation with Sanders. "I said, 'I'd like to ask you to leave.'"
CNN has reached out to Wilkinson for comment.
Sanders' father, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, called it "bigotry" on Twitter.
"On the menu at Red Hen Restaurant in Lexington VA. Or you can ask for the 'Hate Plate'. And appetizers are 'small plates for small minds,'" he posted Saturday.
A separate restaurant in Washington, DC, also named the Red Hen posted on social media that it has no affiliation with the restaurant in Virginia.
The Red Hen should have just taken Sarah Sanders' order, then spent an hour saying, "We'll get back to you on that."
— James Poniewozik (@poniewozik) June 23, 2018
Some Yelp reviewers and Facebook users had confused the DC Italian restaurant for the Virginia American restaurant that Sanders was turned away from.
Other officials have been confronted over the Trump administration's immigration policy as they dined out this week.
Ex-White House ethics chief: Sarah Sanders tweet about being kicked out of restaurant violates ethics laws https://t.co/e8fAjZxSWl pic.twitter.com/KsVHXaypll
— The Hill (@thehill) June 23, 2018
Tuesday night, protesters booed and shouted at Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen as she dined at a Mexican restaurant in Washington, DC.
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Michelle Wolf responds to news that Sarah Sanders was thrown out of a restaurant by tweeting 'no morals, no service'https://t.co/7KdtLOYad6 pic.twitter.com/YHkmjby4jn
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) June 24, 2018