Rats! When vermin invade the Gold Dome

A rat was spotted near the Georgia Senate chamber, pictured here shortly before its demise. AJC/Greg Bluestein

Credit: Greg Bluestein

Credit: Greg Bluestein

A rat was spotted near the Georgia Senate chamber, pictured here shortly before its demise. AJC/Greg Bluestein

It wasn't quite the vermin invasion Sonny Perdue once warned about, but a solitary rat spotted outside the Georgia Senate during one of the busiest days of the legislative session created quite a stir - and a whirlwind of snark.

The rat soon met an untimely demise, care of a Senate doorkeeper who was handy with a garbage pail. But it shall live on in a flood of social media posts and a memorable outtake you can find below.

We were interviewing state Sen. Renee Unterman about Georgia's Medicaid options when the rat - we'll call him King - peeked out from underneath a desk. The Gwinnett Republican gamely gave us permission to post the audio below:

The jokers were soon crawling out of the woodwork.