Greg Gianforte. Photo: Thom Bridge / AP
This, remember, is Greg Gianforte who in 2017 pleaded guilty to misdemeanor after the attack on Ben Jacobs, a Guardian journalist who asked him a question during the election campaign, when Gianforte was a member of the US House of Representatives. Gianforte’s thoughts on bipartisanship and the right way to deal with ideological opponents are contained in a fascinating report by the Daily Montanan on a session at the University of Montana in Missoula on Monday. “As for one of the contributors to the divisive nature of politics,” says the story, “Gianforte pointed to social media as a serious culprit. “On social media, people only tell one side of a story, often with a derogatory one, he said, and he says he tries in conversations to make sure he is saying something that is true, something that needs to be said and is polite rather than offensive or controversial.” “I think our behavior as individuals has deteriorated,” Gianforte said. As the Bozeman Chronicle reported at the time, and the Daily Montanan reported this week, “Law enforcement reports and witness interviews have shown that Gianforte misled authorities about the incident. [in which he assaulted Jacobs]. The Chronicle noted that Gianforte apologized to the journalist the next day, and later, as part of a settlement, apologized in writing and said that his conduct did not meet the high standards to which he had to adhere. Here, meanwhile, is an interview with the Associated Press from June 2017 entitled “Gianforte calls for political policy after attacking a journalist”. In the interview, Gianforte “refused to answer questions about the attack and why his campaign initially published a statement with Jacobs as the instigator, which contradicts testimony, Gianforte’s own apology letter and the criminal charge of which he finally pleaded guilty to. “” He repeated nine times during it [a] half an hour… that he had taken responsibility and wanted to move on “. “I’ve dealt with it,” said Gianforte. “I think I was very clear, I took full responsibility. “I’m not proud of what happened that night, but I have accepted full responsibility and both Ben and I, and I think the people of Montana, want to move on.” Finally, see more about what Gianforte did recently:
