Fox News host Shannon Bream opens up about Supreme Court protesters: ‘They weren’t Fox fans’
"Very few times I've felt threatened while out in the field. The mood here tonight is very volatile."
On Monday night, Fox News anchor Shannon Bream had planned on covering the announcement of President Trump's Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, live from the steps of the Supreme Court itself.
But after hundreds of protesters gathered to voice their opposition to Trump's pick, Bream canceled her coverage plans out of fear for her own safety.
"Very few times I've felt threatened while out in the field," Bream wrote on Twitter. "The mood here tonight is very volatile."
Instead of hosting Fox News @ Night live outside the Supreme Court at 11 p.m., Bream and her crew opted to move the production back to the safety of the network's Washington D.C. studios.
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"It got so volatile at points that we ultimately didn't feel like it would be safe to do an hour of television out there," Bream told her guest, Sen. Ben Sasse (R., Neb.).
During an appearance on Laura Ingraham's syndicated radio show, Bream said Supreme Court police didn't put up the barricades that normally create a buffer between reporters and protesters, allowing demonstrators to brush up against her and her crew.
"They weren't Fox fans — I think that's fair to say," Bream said. "We started to sway a bit because, for example there was one guy wearing a mask who was just standing behind my shoulder, right behind me… But then my crew, the audio guy and camera guys and lighting guys, they have a job to do. They instead were then trying to create a ring around me and a barrier to try to push people back… my executive producer and our bureau chief showed up at one point to assess the situation. They looked around, they saw what was happening and they said 'there's no way you can do an hour long show around here – we need to get you out of here.' "
She added: "You just don't know. No one is screaming at you 'we're gonna kill you' but you just have a lot of uncertainty about which way the crowd's going to go."
There were no reports of arrests from the demonstrations Monday night. Protesters were seen carrying purple signs reading "Protect Roe," a reference to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling protecting a woman's right to access to an abortion. Others shouted, "Hey hey, ho ho, Kavanaugh has got to go."
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Joining the hundreds of protesters on the steps of the Supreme Court were several senators, including Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.) and Cory Booker (D., N.J.).
"Are you ready for a fight? Are you ready to defend Roe vs. Wade?" Sanders said to the crowd. "This is a tough fight but it is a fight that we can win… We have the American people on our side, now we have to go state by state by state to make sure senators do what their constituents want."
>> READ MORE: Pa., N.J. Dems unified in opposition to Trump Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh
About 20 protesters showed up outside the federal courthouse in Center City Monday night to protest Trump's selection of Kavanaugh, mostly fearing a new conservative majority on the Supreme Court could threaten access to a legal abortion.
"It's very deadly serious that Roe v. Wade is on the chopping block," said Sam Goldman, 31, a national organizer for Refuse Fascism, which coordinated the Philadelphia demonstration.
Seven people were arrested in New York City following the president's announcement after protesters blocked traffic outside of Trump Tower, according to the New York Post. Among those was City Councilman Jumaane Williams, a Democrat who is running for lieutenant governor.