Jake Tapper: Republicans defending Gianforte assault “need to re-examine how much you truly love the Constitution”

CNN Reporter Kyung Lah was threated with assault in Montana today

From the May 25 edition of CNN's The Lead with Jake Tapper:

Video file

JAKE TAPPER (HOST):  So far very few members of the Republican party in Montana or Washington, D.C. have condemned the actions. All that the national Republican Congressional Campaign Committee said was quote, “we all make mistakes,” unquote. Which is apparently what we're calling misdemeanor assault these days. After this incident a Montana voter, upon learning our reporter on the ground Kyung Lah is from CNN, told her quote, “you're lucky someone doesn't pop one of you.” Just two weeks ago a different reporter was arrested in West Virginia after he tried to ask Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price whether domestic violence would be considered a pre-existing condition under the new health care legislation.

[...]

Those public officials finding it difficult these days to muster the courage to strongly condemn a politician committing assault on a reporter. Maybe you need to re-examine how much you truly love the Constitution beyond just saying the words. Polls close in a matter of hours in that special election in Montana where one of the candidates, of course, now stands with being charged with misdemeanor assault.

Previously:

Conservative media use Gianforte assault to attack early voting

Fox & Friends parrots Montana GOP congressional candidate's defense for assaulting reporter

The GOP’s war on the press explodes into full view