Etheridge apologizes for confrontation caught on video

Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-N.C.) apologized Monday after he was captured on video confronting and grabbing a “student” who was trying to interview him on the street.

The video went viral and  attracted wide publicity, prompting the lawmaker’s statement.

He said, “I deeply and profoundly regret my reaction and I apologize to all involved.

“Throughout my many years of service to the people of North Carolina, I have always tried to treat people from all viewpoints with respect. No matter how intrusive and partisan our politics can become, this does not justify a poor response. I have and I will always work to promote a civil public discourse.”

The North Carolina Democrat found himself in a blogosphere firestorm after video of the incident surfaced on YouTube.

First posted on Friday but little-noticed until Monday, the video shows a college-aged man asking Etheridge whether he “support[s] the Obama agenda.”

{mosads}Etheridge demanded to know the questioner’s identity.

“Who are you?” he demanded. “Tell me who you are.”

Etheridge appears to hit the camera out of the questioner’s hands and demands to know his identity. Later, he forcibly grabs the man’s hand and neck. The man identified himself as a student working on a project and asks Etheridge to let him go.

At one point in the video Etheridge appears to take a swipe at the man.

“I have a right to know who you are,” Etheridge says.

The questioner refuses to say what school he attends or what his name is. In the video, his face is blurred out to conceal his identity.

“We are just here for a project,” says a male voice off camera. “We are just students, that’s all we are.”

The video does not show what happened before or after the altercation or what was taking place off camera.

It also did not show how many people were involved. As of press time, the “student” in the video had not been identified.

The encounter was taped near Capitol Hill in Washington, but it is unclear on what date.

Republicans quickly pounced on Etheridge’s actions, calling his response “beyond the pale.”

“Bob Etheridge has lost it,” said Jon Thompson, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). “His conduct is unbecoming of a member of Congress.”

But Democrats were quick to push back, suggesting the encounter was orchestrated by the GOP.

Brad Woodhouse, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee (DNC), said the incident was “undoubtedly” the work of an arm of the Republican Party.

“I’ve been in this business [long enough] to know a political tracking operation when I see it,” he said. “I know the NRCC has said it wasn’t them. I don’t necessarily believe them.

“If it was a right-wing blog they’d have their URL blasted all over the video,” he said.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) and NRCC did not respond to requests for comment on whether the individual in the video had any affiliation with those organizations.

Etheridge joins a growing list of lawmakers who’ve found themselves caught in a “YouTube moment” — snips of controversial video that propagate quickly.

Most famously, then-Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) was seen referring to his opponent’s aide as a “macaca” at a 2006 campaign rally. Interpreted by many as a racial slur, the phrase led to a quick drop in the polls and likely cost Allen reelection.

Bloggers and activists now regularly tape their encounters with lawmakers, putting them on the spot and hoping for a controversial response.

Without defending Etheridge’s action, Democrats argued the incident highlights the growing aggression of Republican operatives who have shown up in increasing numbers on Capitol Hill. Known as “trackers,” the activists approach members with cameras rolling in the hopes of producing headlines.

{mosads}“They act like European paparazzi,” a House Democratic leadership aide said. “At some point [members] need to be able to go to and from and do their job without being afraid of some frat kid who’s doing some internship at the NRCC or the RNC stalking them.”

Nevertheless, the aide said members are urged to simply “be polite and just move on” when approached by a tracker.

“What they’re trying to manufacture here is exactly what they think they got with this video,” the aide said.

Though he represents a centrist district, Etheridge has not been mentioned as a Republican target in 2010. First elected in 1996, he’s won his last four reelection bids with over 60 percent of the vote. President Barack Obama won the district with 53 percent of the vote in the 2008 election.

Renee Ellmers, Etheridge’s opponent, criticized his behavior in a statement released to Right Wing News, a conservative blog.

“If a teacher or principal treated a student this way — it would raise serious questions and he would be suspended. This kind of behavior is equally unacceptable in a congressman,” she said. “Congressman Etheridge should apologize — in person — to the two students.”

Ellmers won the May 5 GOP primary with 55 percent, but she’s far behind Etheridge in fundraising. She had raised about $72,000 to his $735,800, according to April Federal Election Commission numbers.

Etheridge offered little further explanation Monday afternoon when reporters caught up with him on Capitol Hill.

“The truth is I had a long day — it was the end of the day, almost sunset,” he said, according to CNN. “But that’s not the issue. The issue is I apologize for my actions and the people of North Carolina know me well and I apologize to these young men as well.”

Etheridge also declined to say whether more words or actions were exchanged beyond those shown in the video.

Christina Wilkie contributed to this article.

This story was originally posted at 1:10 p.m. and updated at 8:29 p.m.