--- title: Donald Trump Praises Congressman Who 'Body Slammed' Reporter description: President Trump defended Republican congressman Greg Gianforte at a campaign rally, who pleaded guilty to assaulting a reporter last year canonical: https://time.com/5429242/donald-trump-defends-greg-gianforte/ author: Eli Meixler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-10-19T03:08:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:47:17.723Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Praises Congressman Who 'Body Slammed' Reporter og:description: "He's my kind of guy," the President said at a Montana rally og:url: https://time.com/5429242/donald-trump-defends-greg-gianforte/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltba238518d14e0cd3/69893cf8e76ad214c563348e/gettyimages-1052479720.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: US-POLITICS-TRUMP og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Praises Congressman Who 'Body Slammed' Reporter twitter:description: "He's my kind of guy," the President said at a Montana rally twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltba238518d14e0cd3/69893cf8e76ad214c563348e/gettyimages-1052479720.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'My Kind of Guy.' President Trump Praises Montana Congressman Who Assaulted a Reporter by [Eli Meixler](https://time.com/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Oct 19, 2018 3:08 AM UTC  President Donald Trump arrives to a "Make America Great" rally in Missoula, Montana on Oct. 18, 2018. President Donald Trump arrives to a "Make America Great" rally in Missoula, Montana on Oct. 18, 2018.Nicholas Kamm—AFP/Getty Images by [Eli Meixler](https://time.com/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Oct 19, 2018 3:08 AM UTC President Donald Trump [defended](https://www.apnews.com/8471894c0a2249c8b11dcdf53eaeb2f2) Republican Greg Gianforte at a rally in Montana on Thursday, after the congressman pleaded guilty to assaulting a reporter last year. “Any guy that can do a body slam — he’s my kind of guy,” Trump said at the campaign rally, according to the Associated Press. Gianforte pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault after an altercation with _Guardian_ reporter Ben Jacobs. Jacobs alleged that Gianforte “[body slammed](http://time.com/4793561/greg-gianforte-ben-jacobs-guardian-body-slam/)” him in response to a question about healthcare, breaking his glasses. The confrontation occurred in May 2017, one day before Gianforte won a special election for Montana’s sole seat in the House of Representatives. Gianforte initially blamed Jacobs for provoking the attack, but he [later apologized](http://time.com/4810301/greg-gianforte-apology-ben-jacobs-assault/) and promised to donate $50,000 to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Paul Ryan [admonished](http://time.com/4794385/paul-ryan-greg-gianforte-ben-jacobs-montana/) Gianforte at the time, saying the altercation was “wrong and should not have happened.” **Read more**: [_Greg Gianforte Clash With Reporter Shows Worrying Trend_](http://time.com/4793656/montana-greg-gianforte-reporter-attack/) Gianforte is fighting off a challenge from former state legislator Kathleen Williams in November’s midterm election. On Thursday, Trump praised Gianforte as a “[great guy and a tough cookie](https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/412170-trump-i-knew-body-slamming-a-reporter-would-help-gianforte).” Trump added that he predicted the assault would actually help Gianforte’s election bid last year, according to The Hill. “I know Montana pretty well,” Trump said. 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