At some point, everyone loses their temper. From simple shouting matches to incidents of road rage there are a mountain of reasons that we can demonstrate volcanic behavior. While every incident has the potential to damage even the strongest human bonds, the existing reputation and relationship can matter just as much as the apologies that often follow explosive behavior. In the case of the incident between Greg Gianforte and The Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs, the situation will play out on a national and even international stage. The next steps by Gianforte must be carefully considered as these actions will determine if the election eve assault was just a stressful lapse in judgment or a reputational defining moment.
Moments after Jacobs claimed Gianforte “body slammed” him for asking questions about the candidate’s position on health care, the news media and social media channels were buzzing with the news. Would the Republicans end up throwing away a seat that Donald Trump carried by 20 points? The answer lies in the work Gianforte did to define his reputation leading up to the incident, and the actions taken immediately afterward.
In addition to his opponent and related supporters, many have been fast to be critical of Gianforte, including the recension of endorsements by two newspapers (The Montana Billings-Gazette and The Missoulian). Additionally, dozens of legislators from both sides of the aisle were quick to join the criticism including South Carolina Representative Mark Sanford using the term, “horrendous” and North Carolina Representative Robert Pittenger calling the behavior, “nonsense.” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi went so far to call Gianforte a “wannabe Trump.”
{mosads}Behaving like President Trump in Montana may lead to building support. He did win the state overwhelmingly, however, it is much more likely that Gianforte’s efforts to build his reputation over time, made this incident something that could possibly allow him to move forward without significant damage.
Leading up to and during his time as a candidate, Gianforte used his peace time wisely, allowing him to make a case to the voters why he would make a good congressman. He worked hard to earn the support of the voters making him an early favorite in the race. Those actions may give him the benefit of the doubt in this situation – and likely a lot more.
As political commentator Jim Ellis described in his newsletter, “Since so many Montanans have already cast their ballot for today’s election, this incident is unlikely to greatly affect the final outcome. Because of the large number of mailed ballots already in possession of local county election officials, it appears we will see a very high turnout. According to the Montana Secretary of State, 357,957 voters requested absentee ballots, the termination Montana election officials use to describe pre-election voting, and, as of yesterday, 259,312 ballots have been returned and are ready for processing.”
So, in addition to building up a reputation and the benefit of the doubt Gianforte locked many early votes too. Unlike with the local papers and some politician endorsements, these ballots cannot be rescinded.
Now calls for early voting changes are underway. Additionally, calls for an apology are mounting too. In handled well, a genuine apology from Gianforte could serve him well.
There are many athletes, politicians, and business leaders that have been in similar situations and dug themselves in deeper by attempting to be defensive or justify their actions. Even if Gianforte thinks he is right, now is not the time to express anything but remorse. A good apology could completely diffuse the situation.
When people make mistakes and express remorse, forgiveness is rarely denied. If the perceived offending party admits to the mistake there is little else that an agitator can do – other than look petty by continuing to “pile on.”
Most people realize that allowing one incident allow us to cloud the image of someone’s character is fundamentally unfair.
With the strong work to build a reputation, combined with a truly sincerely apology, Gianforte may be able to peacefully beat the press that he surely feels are trying to take him down.
Dan Rene is a senior vice president in the public affairs practice at LEVICK, a strategic communications firm.
The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.