Politics

ABC News reporter accosted by Bachmann bodyguards

Alex Pappas Political Reporter
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An ABC News investigative reporter was accosted by presidential candidate Michele Bachmann’s bodyguards after the newsman tried to ask the congresswoman about suffering from migraines, according to a news report.

The questions were provoked by The Daily Caller’s report on the Republican presidential candidate’s medical history published Tuesday.

The reporter, Brian Ross, was attempting to speak with Bachmann after a rally in Aiken, S.C., when he was roughed up, Time Magazine’s Michael Crowley reported. There were three uniformed police officers and two plainclothes bodyguards there, according to the report.

“Ross dashed after Bachmann, repeatedly asking whether she had ever missed a House vote due to a migraine,” Crowley wrote. “She ignored him. Ross pursued her into a parking area behind the stage. Her aides grew alarmed. When Ross made a beeline for the white SUV waiting to carry Bachmann away, two Bachmann men pounced on him, grabbing and pushing him multiple times with what looked to me like unusual force.”

“In fact, I have never seen a reporter treated so roughly at a campaign event, especially not a presidential one. Ross was finally able to break away and lob his question at Bachmann one more time, but she ignored him again.”

Crowley continued: “Afterward, I asked Ross–a hard-nosed pro who nevertheless seemed slightly shaken–whether he’d ever been treated so roughly. ‘A few times,’ he told me. ‘Mostly by mafia people.'” (Stress-related condition ‘incapacitates’ Bachmann; heavy pill use alleged)

Jeff Schneider, a senior vice president at ABC, confirmed that the incident happened for TheDC, saying he spoke with Ross by phone about it. He said the actions by the body guards were not appropriate.

“He’s there trying to do his job,” Schneider said of Ross.

Bachmann Tuesday released a statement about her migraines, saying, “Let me be abundantly clear – my ability to function effectively has never been impeded by migraines and will not affect my ability to serve as Commander in Chief.”