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LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said she was asked to leave a Little Rock restaurant after her office stated the owner said employees felt “threatened and uncomfortable.”
According to a statement from the governor’s office on Wednesday night, Sanders, accompanied by an Arkansas State Police protection detail, was having lunch on Friday at The Croissanterie in Little Rock.
“After the group had been seated at two separate tables for about an hour and fifteen minutes and had paid and tipped the restaurant staff, The Croissanterie’s owner approached a member of the Governor’s Executive Protection Detail and asked the Governor to leave because her presence was ‘making employees threatened and uncomfortable’ due to her political views,” the governor’s spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that as Sanders’ group began to leave, a man standing with staff members “yelled ‘it’s time to go’ and made a crude hand gesture in the Governor’s direction.”
The governor also released a statement:
“Last week I was having lunch with two other moms at a restaurant when the owner approached a member of the State Police Executive Protection Detail and said my presence made their employees feel threatened and told us to leave. Arkansans are known for their warm hospitality, and while that restaurant certainly doesn’t meet that standard, my administration will continue to focus on lifting Arkansans up, not tearing others down with discrimination and hate.”
KARK 4 News has reached out to The Croissanterie for comment but has not yet received a response.
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