"Going in and forcibly removing the protestors in the dead of night sends the wrong message.  City Hall should have continued to talk with the protestors in the light of day if it wanted them removed, instead of evicting them in the middle of the night," Mr. Liu, who presumably would have preferred a daytime eviction, said in a statement. "There seems to be no compelling reason for this action at this time. The protestors have a right to be heard.”

The cold light of day hasn't been too kind to Mr. Liu of late: federal investigators are looking into his murky campaign finances after a New York Times investigation revealed multiple fundraising irregularities.