Anti-Trump Brewery Owner Has Permit Yanked

A Wisconsin brewery that once dangled a "free beer day" if President Trump died is now fighting to stay alive itself. Liberal activist and Minocqua Brewing Co. owner Kirk Bangstad says he'll battle "tooth and nail" after state officials moved to revoke his company's brewing and warehouse permits, effective on Tuesday, over alleged tax and permitting violations tied to beer shipped from Illinois, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The state's Department of Revenue, which seized all of the brewery's canned beer in June, says its alcohol division is enforcing state law fairly and consistently and notes that Bangstad can appeal and keep operating during that process.

Bangstad, who has built a following with left-leaning, politically branded beers like Bernie Brew and AOC IPA, blasted the move as excessive and vowed that officials would have to "pry me out of my taprooms." "As you can imagine, I'm not taking this lying down," Bangstad wrote in an online post, calling the state's move "laughable," per Wisconsin Public Radio. The outspoken owner has been a recurring political figure in the state: He briefly explored a run for governor, operated a super PAC, and drew FBI and Secret Service attention in April after a Facebook post appeared to cheer on an assassination attempt against the president.