Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Jazz
You've yet to prove that this has shit to do with the State. He's not in the Capitol Building or an office building. He's not at a rally. He's walking down the street. The onus is on YOU to prove that he's somehow an agent of the state.
Congressmen aren't cops, so I'll point and laugh at your unclothed emporer/strawman/red herring. You who else are agents of the state? DMV workers, building inspectors, garbagemen, t-ball coaches, coach guardsmen, ambulance drivers, meter maids (outside of Chicago, of course) and accountants. So if one of these punches me in the mouth on the street because I asked them a question, are they acting as an agent of the state?
I've already conceeded that there's a misdemeanor here. There's definitely no felony. And I've seen no evidence that suggests that this is being swept under the rug or that anyone's failed to prosecute or anything of the sort.
So how about either sharing the rest of the story with us, Paul Harvey? If there isn't any, this just makes your post look like a partisan smear campaign.
|
One could argue, that since the "reporter" referenced him by his title and asked him a question which was definitely in the context of his duties as a federal Congressman that it's implied his response and subsequent actions were in the context of his title and duties to that title. I don't view it that way, but I'm sure you could find 12 jurors who view it that way.
Fuglystick, I'm simply saying that a congressman beating up a reporter for asking a question does get pretty close to the line on the government allowing a free press to operate...freely. It could be argued that such a lashing out would create a chilling affect on future reporters. So, to that end, it could be seen as a congressman has an ethical responsibility to accommodate the press.
I'm waiting to see how this plays out before I feel any indignation. Honestly, I don't really care for how the video is framed/shot/edited. Something seems fishy about it...