This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now! I’m Amy Goodman.
On Capitol Hill last week, a Marine Corps veteran and candidate for Senate in North Carolina suffered a broken arm after he disrupted a Senate hearing to voice his opposition to the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The veteran, Brian McGinnis, was forcefully pulled through a door by Capitol Police. His arm became stuck in the door and broke. Brian McGinnis interrupted the meeting while Senator Dan Sullivan was speaking. Sullivan is chair of the Armed Services Subcommittee.
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN: Our next witness is the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, General Gering.
BRIAN McGINNIS: Israel is the reason for this war. Americans do not want to fight this war for Israel.
CAPITOL POLICE: Come on! Let’s go!
BRIAN McGINNIS: America does not want to send —
CAPITOL POLICE: Out!
BRIAN McGINNIS: — its sons and daughters to war for Israel!
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN: Just a reminder to all our witnesses —
BRIAN McGINNIS: Please, stand up as a Marine, and stand up for America!
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN: The Capitol Police will escort any protesters out of the hearing room.
BRIAN McGINNIS: No one wants to fight for Israel!
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN: We ask for calm in these hearings.
WITNESS: His hand!
INTERVIEWER: Brian, why are you here? Why are you getting arrested?
BRIAN McGINNIS: Free Palestine! From the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, Palestine will be free!
INTERVIEWER: Oh my god, they broke his arm.
AMY GOODMAN: Brian McGinnis remained detained by Capitol Police as he was treated in the hospital for a broken arm. He’s now facing charges including assault on a police officer, resisting arrest and unlawful demonstration.
Brian McGinnis served in Iraq in 2003, a member of Veterans for Peace, running for U.S. Senate from North Carolina on the Green Party ticket. This is to replace the outgoing Senator Thom Tillis.
Brian McGinnis joins us now from North Carolina. We’re also joined by his attorney, Sellano Simmons.
We welcome you both to Democracy Now! Brian, describe what happened. First of all, why did you go to that Senate hearing?
BRIAN McGINNIS: Good morning, Amy. I’m smiling because I’m excited to be here and meet you, but I’m sad from the headlines that have been, sadly, going across our screens for the last two-and-a-half years. Inside, I’m sad.
I went to the hearing to hear what our leaders had to say in regards to war preparedness. And it was not any different from what I would expect from military leaders. They are so separate from the people, so in line with, you know, big government and its plans, and which we’ve been privy to with the last 25 years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, is just the voices, the people’s voice, are not being heard with any type of empathy. It’s just, you know, full speed ahead with military force. And I think the people are tired of that. And that’s what I was — the voice I was trying to present at that briefing.
AMY GOODMAN: So, walk us through that protest on March 4th. What exactly happened? How was your arm broken?
BRIAN McGINNIS: Well, all that, I can’t speak about too much because of legal reasons. But everybody has seen the video, or a lot of people have seen the video, so it’s pretty self-explanatory. You know, those briefing rooms are customizable. They have removable walls. And so, I think my arm got wedged between one of those walls and the door, and with the force being applied, my arm got broke. My hand was completely stuck, and that’s how that happened.
AMY GOODMAN: Sellano Simmons, you’re Brian’s attorney. Can explain what the charges are against him?
SELLANO SIMMONS: Yeah. First of all, Amy, thanks for having us.
Brian is facing four counts, three counts of assault on police officers. There are three individuals named, that are law enforcement. The fourth and final count is resisting arrest. He’s being charged by the United States government in Washington, D.C., Superior Court. And we’re looking forward to having our day in court regarding these matters.
AMY GOODMAN: I want to ask you, Brian, as you were being led away, you also said, “Free Palestine.” Your wife and kids are Palestinian. You participated in a demonstration in the West Bank in 2024. What is your message to senators on the issue of Israel and Palestine right now?
BRIAN McGINNIS: Their lack of research in the history of Palestine is abhorrent. There’s so much knowledge of the military occupation of the Palestinians and the torturous reality they face every day that invades their humanity and their rights. And being under such oppression, it would only be natural for someone to resist or fight back. And this seemingly easy dyamic of life to understand, I am trying to present to Americans, in a way, but, sadly, the villainization of Islam or Islamophobia, or the difference in American and Arab cultures, stand — have created such a gap in understanding that it’s a challenging thing to do. But I’m not going to stop.
Like you said, my wife and children are American Palestinians, and so that brings this very close to home. I myself am an Iraq veteran. I have come a long way from who I was when I was in the service. And then, having children and just growing up and watching news and learning, I have a complete different realm of reality and knowledge to contextualize what I’ve done. And I have a lot of resentment and sadness about what America is doing with our brave sons and daughters in the military.
AMY GOODMAN: Republican Senator Tim Sheehy of Montana helped officers remove you, Brian McGinnis, from the hearing. Afterwards, he posted an X, quote, “Capitol Police were attempting to remove an unhinged protestor from the Armed Services hearing. He was fighting back. I decided to help out and deescalate the situation,” the Montana Senator Tim Sheehy said. As we wrap up, how do you respond to what he said? And explain why you’ve decided to run for Senate, to take Thom Tillis’s seat, who’s retiring.
BRIAN McGINNIS: We have much larger problems at hand. Thousands of children are dying. That’s the focus. So, I’m not — no ill will towards Mr. Sheehy. Things happen. People have intentions to deescalate or help situations, and I get that. We all step in, and we’re imperfect, and we’re good at sometimes, bad at sometimes. That’s neither here nor there.
I’m running for Senate to be a voice for the people, representing the Green Party. The Green Party is an established party that’s only people-run. We do not take corporate sponsors. That’s very important, because our government has shown to be highly influenced by big money, and the Green Party is not about that. And I was overwhelmed with looking at my email from the support and the genuine support I got from people from all over the world and here in America, and I really want to convince North Carolinians that I’m a genuine person and a good choice to represent the people in our government. And I just — and my experience at the Senate this last weekend, or last week, was just — it showed me the wall between the people and the government, and I want to break through that wall for people.
AMY GOODMAN: Brian McGinnis, I want to thank you for being with us, Marine veteran, arrested, had his arm broken at a Senate hearing last week while protesting the war against Iran, running for Senate in North Carolina on the Green Party ticket. And I want to thank Sellano Simmons, Brian McGuinness’s attorney.
Coming up, Amy Littlefield, author of Killers of Roe: My Investigation into the Mysterious Death of Abortion Rights. Back in 20 seconds.
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AMY GOODMAN: “Ella’s Song: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest Until It Comes” by Sweet Honey in the Rock, performing at the 2025 Peace Ball.
