Rep. Clay Higgins Grabs Disruptive Protester, Physically Removes Him From the Area
Republican Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana physically removed a disruptive protester from a news conference outside of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. He later defended his actions in a short statement and he also implied…
Republican Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana physically removed a disruptive protester from a news conference outside of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday.
He later defended his actions in a short statement and he also implied the man he escorted away was mentally ill.
In a video shared on Twitter, the congressman can be seen approaching a man and then escorting him to a sidewalk while other protesters in the vicinity accused him of assault.
The man appeared to be with a group called the Maryland Progressive Healthcare Coalition.
He was wearing a T-shirt that featured a quote from Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont on the back.
KATC-TV obtained a statement from Higgins after the incident in which he defended his actions.
“Activist was a 103M. Threatening. He was escorted out and turned over to Capitol Police. Textbook,” Higgins said.
In police code, “103M” almost universally means a “disturbance by a mental person.”
Higgins served as a police officer for years prior to his career in Politics.
Kristy Fogle, who shared the video on Twitter, describes herself as the founder of the Maryland Progressive Healthcare Coalition.
She complained about Higgins’ actions online and argued people from her group routinely resort to disruptive tactics and also claimed the group’s activists yell at members of both parties.
Higgins never struck the man on the video or otherwise appeared to lose his temper.
According to WBRZ-TV, the man on the video was detained by Capitol police and accused Higgins of assaulting him.
It is unclear how long the man was detained or whether he intends to file a formal complaint.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.