The nerves are starting to wear extremely thin among GOP activists these days. Via Blue Indiana, the Muncie Star Press has the sordid details:
A Republican voter registration deputy faces battery charges after he tackled a newspaper reporter and hit the Democratic 6th District congressional candidate after a contentious Delaware County Election Board meeting this afternoon.
The meeting had just ended when Will Statom, GOP registration deputy and secretary of the local Republican Party, attacked Star Press reporter Nick Werner while Werner was interviewing Ball State University student Johanna Perez about hundreds of last-minute voter registrations for Democrat Barack Obama’s campaign.
“He did not seem very happy that we were stating our opinions,” Perez said afterwards about Statom.
Werner said Statom seemed critical of his reporting, sarcastically saying to make sure he screwed up the story again.
Statom had just walked past Werner when Statom turned around and pushed Werner against the wall, grabbed him and they fell to the ground, according to witnesses.
Barry A. Welsh, Democratic 6th district congressional candidate, who attended the meeting, stepped in, and Statom turned around and hit Welsh in the eye.
“When Nick went to the floor, I tried to break it up,” Welsh said.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen abusive behavior from GOP operatives on the campaign trail. Remember Trent Wisecup, the chief of staff to Michigan Rep. Joe Knollenberg? Sadly, it probably won’t be the last time, either.
arrest the guy.
Charge him.
Drag his ass before the judge.
And let all of IN see how the GOP works.
Barry Welsh, of course, is a minister. Wonder what Statom’s resume says. Or more to the point what Mike Pence does about this. Betcha he does nothing although he may try to paint the reporter as a trouble maker or biased.
The internals are quite surprising.
From the comments at Blue Indiana, I guess the guy also referred to a group of African Americans in the crowd as “you people.” And Republicans wonder why they can only get around 10% of the black vote.