N.C. Congressman Under Fire for Physical Confrontation With Man in Washington Published June 14, 2010 | FOXNews.com
Print Email Share Comments (4) Text Size A North Carolina congressman is under fire after a video surfaced Monday showing him in a physical confrontation with a young man on a street in Washington.
Rep. Bob Etheridge, a Democrat, is seen in the amateur video grabbing the wrist and neck of the unidentified man after he approached him and asked if he supported the "Obama agenda."
The video, posted to YouTube, shows the man, who appears to be in his young 20s and who identifies himself as a college student, approaching Etheridge on the sidewalk.
Etheridge is then seen trying to snatch a cellphone camera out of the student's hands. He then grabs the man's wrist and refuses to let go.
"Who are you!" the six-term congressman demands. "Tell me who you are ... I have a right to know who you are."
Another man, not seen on camera, then tells Etheridge, "We're just here for a project."
When the student asks Etheridge to "please let go of me," the congressman then grabs him by the neck.
In a statement Monday, NRCC spokesman Jon Thompson said, "Bob Etheridge has lost it.
"His conduct is unbecoming of a member of Congress. It's bad enough that he's joined Obama's assault on North Carolina jobs, but his physical assault on a college student goes beyond the pale.”
A spokesman for Etheridge did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mike Flynn, a conservative blogger for biggovernment.com, wrote that the confrontation occurred last week outside a fundraiser headlined by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The video, which was posted to YouTube by "DCCameraGuy" on June 11, does not reveal the identity of the two men.
Click here to see the video
