Press groups ask Congress to investigate Greg Gianforte over body-slamming reporter

Coalition of press freedom groups wrote a letter to ethics committee asking that Gianforte be disciplined for allegedly attacking Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs

A coalition of press freedom organizations have asked Congress to investigate the alleged assault of a Guardian reporter by newly elected Republican congressman, Greg Gianforte, on the eve of the state’s special election.

Free Press, the Society of Professional Journalists, Pen America and Reporters Without Borders on Friday filed a complaint with congressional ethics officials asking that Gianforte be disciplined for allegedly attacking Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs.

“A member of the House hasn’t physically assaulted someone this severely since the civil war, and we are unaware of any historical precedent for a lawmaker beating up a reporter,” Gabe Rottman, Pen America’s Washington director, said in a statement. “While Rep Gianforte’s apology was necessary, it was hardly sufficient. Amid a climate of escalating hostility toward the press, it is essential for the House to send a clear message to its members and to the nation that hostile treatment of the press will not be tolerated or ignored.”

Gianforte was charged with misdemeanor assault on 24 May, after allegedly “body-slamming” Jacobs and breaking his glasses. According to audio and eyewitness accounts, the incident escalated when Jacobs asked Gianforte, then the Republican candidate in a hotly contested special election for Montana’s sole congressional seat, a question about the Republican healthcare plan. A Fox News reporter who was in the room said in a first-hand report that the Republican “grabbed Jacobs by the neck with both hands and slammed him into the ground behind him”.

The campaign initially sought to blame Jacobs for the incident, but Gianforte later apologized during his victory speech the following evening. If found guilty, Gianforte could face a fine of up to $500 and a sentence of up to six months in prison. The journalism groups, however, would like to see him disciplined by Congress.

Gianforte has yet to directly contact Jacobs to apologize, nor has he retracted his false statement blaming Jacobs for his own assault.

The organizations filed a complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics, an independent, nonpartisan agency within Congress that can investigate ethics complaints and refer matters to the full House committee on ethics and for a disciplinary recommendation to the full House. They also sent a letter to the House ethics committee to remind the panel that it is required to open an investigation within 30 days of a criminal charge against a member. Gianforte was not yet an elected member of the House when the incident occurred.

“Inaction by the Ethics Committee would send a devastating signal that such conduct is acceptable, a message that would reverberate in every level of government here in the United States as well as around the world, and particularly in places that previously regarded the United States as a global standard-bearer for press freedom,” the groups wrote in the letter addressed to the OCE.

The letter also raised concern that in his statement, Gianforte referred to Jacobs as a “liberal journalist”, an apparent attempt to undermine his credibility.

The morning after the confrontation, speaker of the House Paul Ryan called on Gianforte to apologize but expressed a willingness to seat him in his conference.

Reached for comment, a spokeswoman for the speaker’s office did not reply.

The group also sent a letter to Donald Trump, expressing concern that his antagonistic rhetoric toward the press has been followed by several incidents of physical aggression against the media.

“It is now clear that the steady stream of criticism of the press from the president and members of his administration – including the president’s notorious claim that they are the ‘enemy of the people’ – is emboldening attacks on reporters and the important work they do,” said Suzanne Nossel, the executive director of Pen America. “The Trump administration’s constant demonization of the media is having a dangerous trickle-down effect. It’s time for the president to be presidential, and defend our free press. If he refuses to speak out, President Trump is complicit in political violence.”

In his first interview since the alleged assault, Gianforte repeated that he was sorry for the way he treated Jacobs and was hopeful.

“I made a mistake. And when you make a mistake, you take responsibility, you own up to it, and I think that’s the right course of action,” Gianforte told MTN News in a televised interview that will air on Friday night.

“I think it’s the way we repair relationships and move forward … As I said at the beginning, that is not who I am, it’s not going to define my leadership for the state, and I look forward to working, going forward to represent all of Montana.”

Gianforte has faced continued criticism for the campaign statement in Montana. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle editorial board wrote Friday: “Although Gianforte apologized for his actions after his election, he has yet to disavow the statement issued on his behalf and best described as deceitful. That’s unfortunate, and while our newest congressman will have his day in court if he chooses, hiding from the truth is no way to build confidence in the people he’s been elected to serve.”

The assault by Gianforte came amid increasing concerns about freedom of the press in the United States. Throughout his presidential campaign, Trump inveighed against the press and individual reporters. That hostility has continued and even increased since his inauguration, with Trump referring to reporters as “enemies of the people”. In May, a Public News Service reporter was arrested for attempting to ask a question of health secretary Tom Price. The day after Gianforte’s election, the governor of Texas made a joke at a shooting range about shooting reporters.