According to The Independent Journal’s congressional reporter Joe Perticone, the man holding the camera in the video below is a journalist. Perticone writes, “Secret Service agent choke slams reporter. ” The video doesn’t show that [updated] Videos added below appear to show the reporter intentionally bumping up against the agent and saying “f*ck you” before the agent throws him to the ground. From the ground, you can see the reporter kicking the agent from an apparent defensive position.
Nevertheless, once whatever happened between the two men is over, and both are standing, watch the reporter suddenly reach out and grab the Secret Service agent’s throat.
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ADDED: Additionally, the video below shows a chest bump between the agent and the Time reporter. Perticone reports that things got physical after the Time reporter said “fuck you” to the Secret Service agent.
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ADDED: Here is video of the actual takedown, which, according to Perticone, happened after what looks like a chest bump and the reporter telling the agent, “f*ck you.”
Perticone reports that this happened at Donald Trump’s Monday afternoon campaign rally in Virginia.
CNN reports that the reporter is Time photographer Chris Morris, who claims he was “assaulted first” and that he will not press charges.
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ADDED: Perticone is now calling my write-up “misleading.” But his tweet is misleading. His own video (third one above) shows what looks like the reporter intentionally bumping up against the Secret Service agent and saying “f*ck you” before the throw-down. Then after things have settled down and appear over, the reporter grabs the agent’s throat.
The entire altercation is captured above on the four videos.
ADDED: The Secret Service has released a statement:
ADDED: The reporter claims he grabbed the agent’s throat to demonstrate to the agent what the agent had just done to him.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC