As Spencer and Guy have covered, Christopher Monzon, a canvasser for Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), was brutally attacked Sunday night. Adding insult to injury is that there are those who have cast doubt on the attack and who have even disparaged the victim.
Last night one of our canvassers wearing my T-shirt and a Desantis hat was brutally attacked by 4 animals who told him Republicans weren’t allowed in their neighborhood in #Hialeah #Florida
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 24, 2022
He suffered internal bleeding, a broken jaw & will need facial reconstructive surgery pic.twitter.com/36QpbySg58
In light of those casting doubt, especially from the media, and when it comes to the smear campaign against Monzon, Rubio has continued to stand up for the canvasser.
It’s disgusting how since Monday some in local South #Florida media have been justifying the brutal beating of a GOP canvasser by smearing the victim over past views he has rejected & now regrets#Sayfie pic.twitter.com/Oi1DVVqyxl
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 28, 2022
During a Friday press conference, which is now a pinned tweet on the senator's account, Rubio was asked by reporter about the canvasser's past. He told her "I think it's shameful that you're focused on the victim and not on the aggressor."
When asked if he was "comfortable" with the canvasser's past views, Rubio emphasized "he was a victim of a crime" and pointed out "by the way, I think he's rejected all of those things, and that's what we want people who have those views to do, to change their minds and reject and walk away from, but he was a victim of a felony."
A lengthy Miami Herald report by Sarah Blaskey and Nicholas Nehamas didn't merely portray one of the suspects in a sympathetic light, but it also mentioned "Monzon has a long history of advocating for white supremacy" and later in the piece that "Monzon’s documented links to extremist groups and events are not unique in the Miami-Dade Republican Party."
Rubio has called out the outlet as well as "local media" at length over Twitter about the report.
When a republican volunteer is savagely beaten the traditional media treats the victim as the criminal and the criminal as a nice young man who likes fishing & just made a mistake
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 25, 2022
https://t.co/n9rVlYVmgl
Local media spent 2 days treating the GOP canvasser who was attacked as a criminal & denying the attack was politically motivated
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 26, 2022
Now a second arrest,a police report & surveillance video shows how biased & irresponsible the narrative they were pushing was pic.twitter.com/VdpyXQhrgV
New evidence & a 2nd arrest discredited the narrative pushed by a “journalist” at the dying Miami Herald about the attack on a GOP canvasser in #Florida
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 26, 2022
And instead of focusing on the criminals who did this she emails questions that show she plans to smear the victim as a liar pic.twitter.com/JcAudvplwE
Rubio doubled down at the end of the clip, by emphasizing "so I don't know what this young man did in his past, he's rejected it, but I'll tell you this, it's a crime and we should be focused on these two thugs who attacked him in a felonious attack." The senator again reminded the press they should be asking him about the crime, which is "what the press should be focused on, not shaming a victim of a crime."
When asked another question by another reporter, who suggested Rubio was the one who politicized the attack, the senator disputed that, mentioning that Monzon's father was the one who said as much. "If you're--if what your claim is that the victim of a crime is now a perpetrator of a crime by filing a false police report, then you should go prove that before you smear someone and before you accuse me of trying to encourage him to lie," he insisted.
At the end of the clip, Rubio tells the press "it's shameful what's happened to the media and how it's okay to shame and attack a victim when the victim is a conservative. It's disgusting. It's grotesque."
The senator also during the press conference denounced the violent assault committed against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) husband, Paul Pelosi. As he mentioned, motivations of the attack were not known, though he denounced it either way. "If it was politically motivated, it's a crime, I condemn it. If it wasn't politically motivated, it's a crime, and I condemn it."
Drawing a comparison between the coverage of Monzon and Pelosi, Rubio pointed out that Pelosi "was just recently arrested," adding "I'm not bringing that up. Does he deserve to be beaten in his home because he has a previous arrest a few months ago? No, he doesn't. It's a crime."
Others were still quick to jump to conclusions. As our friends at Twitchy highlighted, this includes Laurence Tribe and MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell.
This is nightmarish. I wish Paul Pelosi a full and rapid recovery. The far right has normalized the use of violence even against the families of public officials with whom somebody might disagree. This absolutely must stop. https://t.co/TZbcCCqyHn
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) October 28, 2022
BREAKING: Suspect in attack on Nancy Pelosi's husband was searching for the House speaker, sources say.@mitchellreports: "The intruder confronted Mr. Pelosi in their home, shouting 'where is Nancy' ... That's what the intruders going through hallways on Jan. 6 were shouting." pic.twitter.com/qRtwGye32E
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) October 28, 2022
The far-left group UltaViolet also Republicans and "right wing media outlets like Fox News."
Statement from @UltraViolet on the attempt on Paul Pelosi's life by a man looking to harm Speaker Pelosi, a frequent target of the right-wing's violent rhetoric, amplified by social media platforms and normalized by Fox
— Shaunna Thomas (@SLThomas) October 28, 2022
"It did not come out of nowhere."https://t.co/qtdjlUlkaK
Since then, authorities have identified the suspect who allegedly attacked Mr. Pelosi. David DePape, 42, is reportedly "a former Castro nudist protester" and "hemp jewelry maker" who Spencer noted in his coverage was "reportedly estranged from his family, struggled with drug addiction, and at least for a while lived in a a storage container." At the time of the afternoon press conference, San Francisco police said "the motive for this attack is still being determined."
Denouncing the violent attacks, including when it comes to that committee against the Rubio canvasser, has come from across the political aisle as well. This includes Charlie Crist, who is running as a Democrat against Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and Rep. Val Demings (D-FL), who is running against Rubio.
There’s no place for violence in politics.
— Charlie Crist (@CharlieCrist) October 24, 2022
Senator Rubio, your canvasser is in our prayers and we look forward to those responsible being brought to justice.
I have zero tolerance for any violence against any person for any reason. Those responsible for attacking a canvasser last night should be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
— Val Demings (@valdemings) October 24, 2022
That was not all Demings had to say about the attack, though. Video footage obtained by Townhall shows Demings being asked about the attack during a campaign event earlier this week. Her response includes touting her record as a police officer and then chief of police to share her "number one priority was the reduction of violent crime." While Demings emphasized "I do not tolerate violent crime under any circumstances, and what they are reporting happened happened then I would recommend that they catch them and prosecute them to the full extent of the law," she moved on to discussing other forms of violence.
"But let me be clear about this," Demings continued, as she then pivoted to discussing January 6. "We don't pick and choose who we want to enforce the laws against. I think every person that is involved in violent behavior, just like the people who beat police offers down on January 6 at the United States Capitol. I have zero tolerance for any violence against any person for any reason."
While Demings also went on to mention she wished the canvasser well and a speedy recovery, she added "but that's why we need to remember our words matter," which she said she tells her supports, "but that message needs to be a message for both sides of the aisle."
Both Rubio and DeSantis are favored to win re-election.
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