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Anti-war protesters shut down Senate proceedings momentarily Wednesday afternoon by chanting slogans that disrupted a debate over the budget resolution. Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) was speaking on the Senate floor at 2:20 p.m. when the group began chanting, “We are from the National Campaign for Non-Violent Resistance” over and over. Senate Budget Chairman Kent Conrad (N.D.), who was managing debate for the Democrats, asked the sergeant at arms to clear the disturbance.U.S. Capitol Police officers removed at least 10 protesters from the Senate chamber after they shouted at lawmakers to stop funding the war in Iraq. Most of the protesters wore what appeared to be cheesecloth over their faces, giving them a ghostly appearance. "Stop the dying," chanted one protester. Most of the protesters appeared to be middle-aged. One carried a cane and had to be helped along out of the chamber by a security officer. Capitol Police ordered reporters to clear a hallway adjacent to the chamber. A tense exchange between Capitol Hill reporters and police ensued, with reporters questioning officers for keeping them from the scene. That brought out Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer, who listened to Capitol reporters complain about being barred from witnessing how police handled the protesters. Gainer said the episode "unfolded quick," and that blocking the press from covering the protest was "not the message" the Senate wanted to send. He called the press complaints "reasonable" and "point well-taken." "I never would expect our officers to manage the press while they're engaged in their duty," Gainer said. "To the extent we were imperfect, we will try to improve." The protest halted Senate proceedings for about 10 minutes. When calm was restored, senators resumed the budget debate.
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