The scene at the Capitol in Madison on Thursday reflected the larger state of affairs in Wisconsin, with Democratic senators pounding on locked chamber doors as protesters were escorted out of the building by police. Meanwhile, the Republican senators’ whereabouts were somewhat mysterious, according to The Associated Press.

AP via Google News:

About 200 people spent the night in the Capitol in protest over the Senate’s swift and unexpected passage of the bill.

With the Assembly’s vote scheduled for 11 a.m., dozens of Democratic representatives showed up to find the doors to the chamber locked.

“What more egregious, illegal, unethical step can be taken to prevent democracy in Wisconsin?” asked Rep. Donna Seidel, D-Wausau, as she pounded on the door along with her colleagues.

With the Assembly empty, it was not clear where Republican lawmakers were. They showed up and began to file after the doors were opened.

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