--- title: Watch Marco Rubio's Bizarre Run-In With InfoWars' Alex Jones description: Sen. Marco Rubio had a tense run-in with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones outside a hearing with Facebook and Twitter. canonical: https://time.com/5387640/alex-jones-senator-marco-rubio/ author: Gina Martinez article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-09-05T19:31:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:53:12.991Z article:section: Politics og:title: Watch Marco Rubio's Bizarre Run-In With InfoWars Host Alex Jones Outside a Senate Hearing og:description: When Jones asks if he is going to get arrested, Rubio responds, "You're not gonna get arrested man, I'll handle it myself" og:url: https://time.com/5387640/alex-jones-senator-marco-rubio/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd65791316e0d4aab/69893986bc6cfc07f33e6e12/screen-shot-2018-09-05-at-3-21-38-pm.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1557 og:image:height: 876 og:image:alt: Marco-Rubio-Alex-Jones og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Watch Marco Rubio's Bizarre Run-In With InfoWars Host Alex Jones Outside a Senate Hearing twitter:description: When Jones asks if he is going to get arrested, Rubio responds, "You're not gonna get arrested man, I'll handle it myself" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd65791316e0d4aab/69893986bc6cfc07f33e6e12/screen-shot-2018-09-05-at-3-21-38-pm.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Watch Marco Rubio's Bizarre Run-In With InfoWars Host Alex Jones Outside a Senate Hearing > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Conservative Radio Host Alex Jones Crashes Social Media Hearing [Watch (HLS stream): Conservative Radio Host Alex Jones Crashes Social Media Hearing](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/WiT0W5ao.m3u8) (1:08)  _Published 2018-09-05. Conservative Radio Host Alex Jones Crashes Social Media Hearing_ by [Gina Martinez](https://time.com/author/gina-martinez/) ## Gina Martinez Sep 5, 2018 7:31 PM UTC  This screenshot from an Associated Press YouTube video shows Sen. Marco Rubio and Alex Jones clashing outside the Senate hearing on social media regulation on Wednesday. This screenshot from an Associated Press YouTube video shows Sen. Marco Rubio and Alex Jones clashing outside the Senate hearing on social media regulation on Wednesday. YouTube by [Gina Martinez](https://time.com/author/gina-martinez/) ## Gina Martinez Sep 5, 2018 7:31 PM UTC Sen. Marco Rubio had a tense run-in with conspiracy theorist Alex Jones Wednesday outside a [hearing with Facebook and Twitter](http://time.com/5384374/facebook-twitter-congress-hearing/) about foreign interference on social media. Video shows Jones, the creator of far-right media outlet InfoWars, interrupt the Florida Republican as he spoke to reporters during a break in Senate Intelligence Committee proceedings. Rubio attempts to laugh off Jones. Jones then mocks Rubio’s laugh and continues to interrupt. At one point, Jones puts his hand on Rubio’s shoulder. “Hey, don’t touch me again man, I’m asking you do not touch me,” Rubio tells Jones. “Well sure, I just patted you nicely,” Jones says. When Jones asks if he is going to get arrested, Rubio responds, “You’re not gonna get arrested man, I’ll handle it myself.” “Marco Rubio just threatened to beat me up,” Jones tells his camera crew. “I didn’t say that,” Rubio says. “Oh he’ll beat me up,” Jones says. “Oh he’s so mad. You’re not going to silence me, you’re not going to silence America.” As Rubio leaves reporters, Jones continues to berate the Senator, calling him a “little gangster thug” and a “frat boy.” > [](https://twitter.com/KaivanShroff/status/1037381351824142337) Jones is the founder and host of InfoWars, a far-right website that peddles conspiracy theories. A Texas judge recently denied Jones’ motion to dismiss a defamation lawsuit brought against him by the parents of a child killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting. Jones has claimed the shooting was staged by the government in an effort to push gun control efforts, and that parents of the slain children were so-called “crisis actors.” After intense backlash, Facebook and Twitter recently suspended and removed Jones’ content for [violating terms of service](http://time.com/5360638/twitter-alex-jones-ban-dorsey/), Jones claims the companies are attempting to censure him. ## Transcript I am here because there is a concerted effort by the Democratic Party and multinational corporations in big tech to silence Conservative and Nationalists and Populist's voices ahead of this critical mid- term election. And the big tech companies and the head Apple admit that they met with Senator Warner who's running this whole thing To begin shutting down conservatives for the democrats threatened to federalize big tech eveaded. Not basically rolle over to them, so the Republican's left a vacuum there by not coming the regulation to say you cannot violate. People's speech, so I want regulations like the First Amendment to be enforced, to say you're not gonna violate people's free speech. You're not gonna be able to shut people down like this. It's happening to everybody now who's a Libertarian or a conservative, the dominoes are falling. The First Amendment's being destroyed, but I think the corporate dying dinosaur media has bit off more than it can chew, and what you've done is only gonna make people that much stronger and fight for free speech that much more. But I'll say this, shame on the mainstream corporate media. Shame on the mainstream corporate media for not defending the First Amendment. 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