Sen. Josh Hawley claimed his DC home was vandalized by 'Antifa scumbags,' but activists say he mischaracterized their 'peaceful' protest

• Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican, said in a tweet his home near Washington, DC, had been "vandalized" and his wife and child had been "threatened" by people he called "Antifa scumbags."
• But ShutDownDC, the group that organized the protest, said they organized a peaceful vigil outside his home.
• A 50-minute video shared by the group on YouTube shows about 15 organizers taking part, holding signs, chanting, and yelling into a megaphone.
• Hawley is one of about a dozen senators who say they plan to object to the certification of the Electoral College vote, which in December cemented President-elect Joe Biden's win over President Trump.
• "Antifa," short for "anti-fascist," describes a decentralized, leaderless movement dedicated to combatting right-wing authoritarianism and white supremacy.

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley in a tweet Monday said his wife and daughter were terrorized by a group of people outside his Northern Virginia home. He called the demonstrators "Antifa scumbags," but those who protested say they conducted a peaceful "vigil."

"Tonight while I was in Missouri, Antifa scumbags came to our place in DC and threatened my wife and newborn daughter, who can't travel," Hawley said. "They screamed threats, vandalized, and tried to pound open our door."

"Let me be clear: My family & I will not be intimidated by leftwing violence," he added.

But the protesters who showed up outside the residence tell a different story.

The gathering of about 15 people was organized by ShutDownDC, according to The Washington Post, a group that has organized other protests in recent months, including a headline-making "noise demonstration" outside the home of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in August.

A 50-minute video uploaded to YouTube by the protesters shows demonstrators gathering at a nearby shopping center before walking to and arriving at Hawley's residence in the suburbs of DC about halfway through the video. The nearly hour-long upload shows protesters shouting through a megaphone and drawing in chalk on the sidewalk.

The organizers told The Washington Post they didn't vandalize Hawley's home and said they never knocked on Hawley's door, instead choosing to ring the doorbell while they placed a copy of the US Constitution at the door.

"This was not threatening behavior," Patrick Young, a ShutDownDC organizer, told The Washington Post. "This is people engaging in democracy and engaging in civil discourse. … This was a pretty tame and peaceful visit to his house."

We visited Senator Hawley's house for around 30 minutes. We sang songs, chanted and shared our stories. A small group of people delivered a copy of the constitution to his door

Young told The Washington Post the group chose to organize outside of Hawley's residence because many DC institutions and businesses are working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Though, as the Post noted, Congress still meets in person.

"We are absolutely and unapologetically anti-fascists," ShutDownDC said in a tweet. "We are perplexed that someone would use that in the pejorative and we certainly would hope that Senator Hawley also opposes fascism.

"We visited Senator Hawley's house for around 30 minutes," the group added in another tweet. "We sang songs, chanted, and shared our stories. A small group of people delivered a copy of the constitution to his door."

But Hawley on Twitter fired back and said the protesters were "screaming threats through bullhorns, vandalizing property, pounding on the doors of homes and terrorizing innocent people and children."

Republicans, especially last year, targeted antifa, which is short for "anti-fascist" and describes a decentralized, leaderless movement dedicated to combatting right-wing authoritarianism and white supremacy. Trump last year said he intended to label the group a "terrorist organization."

Hawley is one of about a dozen GOP senators who have said they plan Wednesday to object to the certification of the Electoral College vote. The vote, which took place in December, reaffirmed President-elect Joe Biden's win over President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

After winning several key states, including Pennsylvania and Georgia, Biden secured 306 electoral votes compared to Trump's 232 during the Electoral College vote in December.

In the months since the election, Trump has refused to concede his loss and instead has leveraged baseless claims of widespread voter fraud to justify his loss, despite his and his lawyers' inability to prove such claims in court. Last week, Hawley announced he would object to the certification of the Electoral College vote. Then, on Sunday, a group of senators led by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz likewise said they'd object to the certification.

The objections by senators and a group of GOP members of the House who are likely to do the same will force Congress to vote on whether to certify the results, but their objections are unlikely to have any impact on whether Biden is certified the winner by Congress.