UPDATE: Fox News has released the audio of the assault.

File in the You Just Can’t Make This Up Department

On the eve of a special election in Montana to fill the congressional seat vacated by newly installed secretary of Interior, Ryan Zinke, GOP candidate and wannabe WWF champion Greg Gianforte body slammed a Guardian reporter.  That’s not really news, of course, since many Republicans are known the be knuckledragging, ignorant thugs.  The NEWS here is that there was a Fox News crew present, and they actually corroborated the story resulting in assault charges against Gianforte.

The whole scene occurred at Gianforte’s Bozeman campaign office and Fox was there to interview him for a segment on Bret Baier’s show scheduled for Thursday. While setting up, Ben Jacobs, a reporter for the Guardian, walked in and started asking Gianforte about his view on the GOP bill that strips health insurance from 23 million Americans.  Gianforte refused to answer, and when Jacobs persisted, he grabbed the reporter by the neck and body slammed him, got on top of him and started pummeling him yelling “I’m sick and tired of this!”

Apparently, the incident was so egregious that the local sheriff, who is a Gianforte supporter, had to enforce the law and charged him with assault.  Now, I have no illusions that this criminal won’t still be supported by GOP voters.  Being immune to facts, they’ll vote for Gianforte, anyway, and he’ll likely be sworn in from a jail cell.