The Montana Democratic Party said Wednesday that it mailed an orange jumpsuit to Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte to “celebrate” his swearing in nine days after he pleaded guilty to assaulting a reporter.
“Everyone knows you need plenty of suits to work on Capitol Hill,” the party said in a press release. “While millionaire Gianforte can certainly afford his own, we know he has a lot of legal fees to pay. So, we thought we’d help him out and get him started by mailing a new suit to his office in the Longworth House Office Building in Washington. An orange jumpsuit, that is.”
Mr. Gianforte pleaded guilty June 12 to misdemeanor assault against Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs after he was accused of slamming Mr. Jacobs to the ground and punching him on the eve of Montana’s special election. Mr. Gianforte ended up beating his Democratic opponent, Rob Quist, by 6 percentage points.
He was later sentenced to community service and anger management over the assault, Mediaite noted.
“Greg Gianforte was previously most well-known for losing the governor’s race in a wave year. Now he’s most well-known for pleading guilty to the ’Big Sky body slam,’” Montana Democrats spokesman Roy Loewenstein said in a statement. “As a convicted criminal, he will be hidden by his leadership and not given any position of influence in Washington. So, we got Mr. Gianforte a welcome gift to help his new colleagues identify him.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee called the stunt “sad and petty.”
“The swearing-in ceremony held today is about all Montanans regaining their voice in the House of Representatives, not partisan politics,” NRCC spokesman Jack Pandol said in a statement. “Instead, Montana Democrats are crying over spilled milk simply because they lost an election. This sad and petty behavior demonstrates exactly why voters continue to turn away from the Democratic Party and what they stand for.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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