Dem rep calls his office a ‘bodyslam free zone’ for media

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said Thursday that his office is a “bodyslam free zone” for the media following an alleged physical confrontation between GOP House candidate Greg Gianforte and a reporter in Montana.

“Dear Press: We have created a safe zone in our office,” he tweeted with the hashtag #ThursdayThoughts. “Reporters will (1) get the truth and (2) not get body slammed.”

Lieu’s tweet includes a sign outside his congressional office declaring it a “#AlternativeFacts Free Zone Period” and a “Bodyslam Free Zone.”

Dear Press: We have created a safe zone in our office. Reporters will (1) get the truth and (2) not get body slammed. #ThursdayThoughts pic.twitter.com/vPUrrnftLv

— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 25, 2017

The #AlternativeFacts reference includes a nod to White House press secretary Sean Spicer and a phrase used by White House adviser Kellyanne Conway.  

{mosads}The California lawmaker in an earlier tweet Thursday also urged Montana voters to choose Democratic House candidate Rob Quist over Gianforte.

“In [sic] you’re a voter in MT & embarrassed by Montana GOP candidate Gianforte’s criminal assault, the best thing you can do is vote for Quist,” Lieu wrote.

In you’re a voter in MT & embarrassed by Montana GOP candidate Gianforte’s criminal assault, the best thing you can do is vote for Quist.

— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 25, 2017

The race between Gianforte and Quist has drawn national attention, with both parties looking to the special election as evidence of whether President Trump is hurting GOP candidates across the country.

The pair is competing over the seat vacated by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. Many voters in the state have already submitted mail ballots. Polls in Montana close at 10 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Gianforte canceled appearances on two cable news networks Thursday following criminal charges filed against him the night before.

Montana law enforcement officials on Wednesday evening charged Gianforte with misdemeanor assault following an alleged physical altercation between him and a reporter.

Gianforte allegedly “body slammed” The Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs at the candidate’s campaign headquarters in Bozeman after receiving a question about the GOP’s ObamaCare replacement plan.

The Republican denies Jacobs’s charges, but the incident has roiled a race that he is seen as a slight favorite to win.