Wrestling with Gianforte

It’s time to clear the air. Protocol was broken; there are rules for suplexing journalists. It must be done within the bounds of self-defense and even then it must be done using strict caution and measured judgement. Last week, on the eve of the election, our congressman-elect assaulted a reporter from The Guardian, a British daily paper. Allegedly it was unprovoked and no matter how good a man Greg Gianforte is, this type of action is never excusable, legal or stately. He knows this.

Contrary to leftist thought, the Republican Party is not the party of thugs. The collective consciousness of the media have attempted to portray this as a part of Trump’s America, a new norm described coated in dark and negative undercurrents. This was not the case when in 2010 North Carolina democratic Congressman Bob Etheridge assaulted a student asking him questions for a school project. Captured on video, he grabs the student by the neck, wrings him and doesn’t let go. But headline after headline conjure the words “alt-right” or “neo-nazi” in attempted affiliation with the current Republican party. This is why so many people consider the media to be unfair. These unfortunate actions are none of those strong, repugnant words. Greg said it best when he described his actions as a mistake. Body-slamming reporters without physical provocation and losing tempers during difficult and important questions is not on the Republican platform. The Republican Party distances itself from these actions and much of its leadership insisted that Greg was not only in the wrong but should promptly apologize.

“I should not have treated that reporter that way. And for that I’m sorry, Mr. Ben Jacobs,” Gianforte said at his victory party Thursday night. A somber Greg apologized and will likely live with the consequences for a long time. Since the incident, every Twitter post or Facebook update has been littered with badgery towards Greg. On Memorial Day, Greg tweeted about visiting the graves of our fallen soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice to uphold our American life. Dozens of ad hominem attacks were fired at him in the virtual world on a post even as uncontroversial as that.

This is something Gianforte will have to wrestle with for a long time. Many have called for his resignation or expulsion from Congress. This is not going to happen and since the beginning of our nation, only 20 congressman have been expelled from Congress. Nineteen of the 20 were Democrats and only two of the expulsions occurred in modern political history.

The courts will ask and duly receive any retribution Greg owes. He has been ordered to appear in court by June 7 and any new evidence for or against his case along with its outcome is unknown. There are two paths to take from here. Either we pick a man up while he’s down, facing international criticism and has humbly apologized or we can choose to not let go of a hapless incident that will only hinder our congressman and gridlock his effectiveness in D.C. For our benefit, we should see past this, and rather, hold our congressman accountable with his future voting record and legislative depth. Personal issues often reveal character but witnesses to Greg’s life believe this to be an isolated incident and not reflective of the man as a whole. Though it’s great to like your elected officials, we voted for his policies. If Greg doesn’t represent Montana by fighting for our public lands, reshaping the Affordable Care Act and fulfilling other campaign promises then, and only then, will he be unsuited to serve us all.