Grimm's statement last night...
I was extremely annoyed because I was doing NY1 a favor by rushing to do their interview first in lieu of several other requests. The reporter knew that I was in a hurry and was only there to comment on the State of the Union, but insisted on taking a disrespectful and cheap shot at the end of the interview, because I did not have time to speak off-topic. I verbally took the reporter to task and told him off, because I expect a certain level of professionalism and respect, especially when I go out of my way to do that reporter a favor. I doubt that I am the first Member of Congress to tell off a reporter, and I am sure I won’t be the last.
and his hurried apology this morning (via @sahilkapur )
[2]
The ubiquitous apology that solves all problems...
Breaking - On NY1 now. Grimm calls @mikescotto [3] to apologize, after threatening injury to DC reporter for asking ques on criminal probe.
— Josh Robin (@joshrobin) January 29, 2014 [4]
And the initial outburst...
Submitted by Mike Krieger of Liberty Blitzkrieg blog [5],
My home state of New York sure knows how to pick its Congressional Representatives. From Peter King [6], who for all intents and purposes thinks he is living the life of a capo in a real life Goodfellas movie, to Michael Grimm, another Republican Congressman, these people are literally thugs. As I have said before, I have a lot more respect for the mafia than I do for politicians and bankers, at least the mob faces jail time.
So here’s what happened. From Real Clear Politics:
After being asked by NY1 reporter Michael Scotto about the investigation, Grimm replied, “That’s off-topic. This is only about president’s speech,” and walked off camera.
Scotto briefly concluded his report, and Grimm — assuming the broadcast was over — returned to admonish the reporter. The camera remained on, however. “Let me be clear to you: You ever do that to me again, I’ll throw you off this f##king balcony,” Grimm threatened.
After a brief back-and-forth about the validity of the question, Grimm concluded, “No, no, you’re not man enough, you’re not man enough. I’ll break you in half. Like a boy.”
Never forget that these are the people voting on everything from your civil liberties to going to war. Frightening.
Check out a video of the incident: