During his speech after winning Thursday’s special election for the US House in Montana, Greg Gianforte (R) addressed the incident where he body-slammed Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs by saying, “I should not have responded in the way that I did, and for that I’m sorry. I should not have treated that reporter that way, and for that, I’m sorry, Mr. Ben Jacobs.”
Gianforte said, “Last night, I learned a lesson. … And when you make a mistake, you have to own up it. That’s the Montana way. Last night I made a mistake, and I took an action that I can’t take back, and I’m not proud of what happened. I should not have responded in the way that I did, and for that I’m sorry. I should not have treated that reporter that way, and for that, I’m sorry, Mr. Ben Jacobs. I also want to apologize to the Fox News team that was there. And I’m sorry to each one of you that we had to go through this. That’s not the person that I am, and it’s not the way I’ll lead in this state. Rest assured, our work is just beginning, but it does begin with me taking responsibility for my own actions. You deserve a congressman who stays out of the limelight and just gets the job done.”
In a statement issued right after the incident, Gianforte’s campaign claimed, “Jacobs grabbed Greg’s wrist, and spun away from Greg, pushing them both to the ground. It’s unfortunate that this aggressive behavior from a liberal journalist created this scene at our campaign volunteer BBQ.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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