Portland Bar Visitors Clash With a Patron Wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ Hat

Portland has been called “the most politically violent city in the U.S.,” according to KATU, and an incident that occurred on Friday outside of a local bar certainly doesn’t disprove this. Two people were arrested and now face assault charges for allegedly attacking a Trump supporter wearing a Make America Great Again — or MAGA — hat outside of Growler’s Taproom on SE 33rd and Hawthorne KPTV FOX 12 first reported.

Luke Lenzner, the alleged victim, told KPTV that he was “mobbed” by “everyone inside” the bar outside of the bar’s patio because of his MAGA hat. He told police he was then physically assaulted by Adebisi Okuneye and Leopold Hauser, the two who face assault charges for the incident.

Bystander Michael Radosevich captured video of events leading up to the arrest at around 10:45 p.m. at The Vern on 26th and Hawthorne. According to KATU, the video shows Lenzner cursing at bar patrons and yelling about his military service, demanding “Don’t ever f**king disrespect me.” According to a separate recording of the event, he at one point says, “Come on outside, see what happens,” only for a few patrons to yell back that no one wants to fight him. Eventually he leaves.

Lenzner later told KATU that he had not, in fact, served in the military, and that he said it in the “heat of the moment” when he meant to say that his family had served, and that he regretted it. He added that another patron at The Vern had put a toilet seat cover on his head and that someone else had thrown something at him.

An anonymous source claimed responsibility for giving him a toilet seat cover, but not for putting it on him. “I set it on the bar next to him and said, ‘Here you go, man. I got you this asshat. It’ll be a step up from the one you’re wearing,’” the source told KATU, and that he then immediately exited, not wanting to provoke a physical fight. He said that Lenzner was on a swivel, randomly staring at people. Lenzner was reportedly cut off moments later by the bartender, which is when he started yelling. According to KATU, Lenzer later agreed with the anonymous source’s account of what happened.

According to the prosecutor’s probable cause affidavit and KATU’s reporting, Okuneye claims that he exited the bar and approached her, asking “Bitch, do you like my hat?” As the two argued, Hauser says he got in between them, and they attempted to get in a physical fight; Okuneye says she doesn’t know who hit Lenzner. Lenzner says he never threw a punch, according to KATU.

Correction, August 28, 2019, 4:17 p.m.: This photo caption for this article was corrected to show that the assault took place at Growler’s Taproom, not the Vern.

• Man says he was assaulted outside Portland bar for wearing ‘MAGA’ hat; two people arrested [KPTV]
• Video shows man in ‘MAGA’ hat shouting in bar shortly before he says he was attacked [KATU 2]
• Growler’s Taproom [Official]
• The Vern [Facebook]