On Friday’s “PBS NewsHour,” New York Times columnist David Brooks stated that Representative-elect Greg Gianforte (R-MT) apologized for body-slamming Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs, which is ” frankly a step up from what we have seen on the presidential level.”

Brooks said, “The climate of ugliness is no doubt ratcheting up and giving some permission to this. In this case, I’m willing to give the guy a break. He did apologize. And he could have just lost his temper. We’ll see what his career is like. But I’m willing to — if a leader is at least willing to apologize, that’s frankly a step up from what we’ve seen on the presidential level.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett