Ben Cohen, one of the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s, was removed from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on Wednesday. This occurred during a protest led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is the Director General of Health and Human Services (HHS).
About 15 minutes into the hearing, protesters started shouting, and Cohen was ultimately ejected from the room. In the middle of the uproar, Cohen could be seen vocally objecting from behind Kennedy’s seating area, saying, “Congress will pay the bomb.”
Eventually, a police officer escorted Cohen away while he continued to express his views.
In a post on social media platform X, Cohen reflected on the situation, stating, “I told Congress that they were buying bombs and killing poor kids in Gaza, while simultaneously cutting Medicaid for poor children in the U.S. This was the response from the authorities.” He shared a video of his removal as well.
Cohen, known for his political activism, has faced legal issues in the past, including an arrest for disorderly conduct in 2018 while protesting the presence of F-35 fighter jets in Vermont. He also supported Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaigns in both 2016 and 2020.
More recently, during the 2024 presidential race, Cohen and fellow co-founder Jerry Greenfield introduced a special ice cream flavor called “Kamala Coconut Dream” to support Kamala Harris, the former vice president.
