Congressman Gets Heated, Threatens Reporter

29 Jan, 2014

U.S. Representative Michael Grimm was caught on a television camera saying to a reporter, “I’ll break you in half,” after he was asked in an interview about a federal investigation into campaign finance violations.

The Staten Island, New York Republican had just walked away after the interview on Tuesday night in the Capitol building in Washington with cable channel NY1 News. He was asked about the arrest this month of one of his fundraisers.

With the camera still rolling, Grimm returned and confronted the reporter, Michael Scotto. He could be heard saying, “I’ll break you in half,” and NY1 said he threatened to throw Scotto over a balcony.

Grimm issued a statement late Tuesday, saying the reporter had taken a “cheap shot” by asking a question about a topic other than President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address, which the president had just delivered.

A fundraiser for Grimm, Diana Durand, was arrested this month on charges she illegally funneled more than $10,000 to his campaign.

Reuters

Image Jacquelyn Martin / AP

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