(BrightPress.org) – Local cops are contesting the claim by Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign that leftist protesters rammed a parked campaign vehicle in retaliation for comments made by the Republican primary candidate. Ramaswamy shared a video of their interaction on X (Twitter).
In the video, a young woman sniped at Ramaswamy, claiming that her mom is an overworked child psychologist who works in schools. She also made comments about protecting “trans kids.” Ramaswamy thanked them for their input and for keeping their disagreement peaceful and civil.
In his quoted post of the video, Ramaswamy added comments describing the exchange as civil. He then said that two of the individuals got into their car and rammed a rental car being used by the campaign. He said that bad actors should be held accountable, but that peaceful protesters shouldn’t be tarred by the bad behavior of their compatriots.
Grinnell Police disputed all the claims made by Ramaswamy’s campaign, according to Brianne Pfannenstiel, Chief Politics Reporter writing for the Des Moines Register. Police reported arriving at the Saints Rest Coffee House at 1:02 p.m. upon getting a call about “property damage.”
Police spoke with Celia Meagher, 22, who said she accidentally backed her 2007 blue Honda Civic into a 2023 black Ford Expedition, which was parked directly behind her vehicle. Meagher’s back bumper hit the driver’s side rear bumper of the SUV causing minor damage. Meagher was cited for “unsafe backing.” The SUV was an unlabeled rental vehicle with no Ramaswamy branding on the car indicating it belonged to the campaign.
Police posted a media release to “clarify” some of the details surrounding the accident since inaccurate descriptions were circulating on social media due to Ramaswamy’s claims. They said they found “no evidence” to back up the narrative that Meagher was one of the protesters. They further said that she was not in the area to protest, but had lunch at a nearby deli before leaving. She also did not know who the SUV belonged to.
Ramaswamy’s campaign doubled down on the narrative, with spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin claiming she witnessed the incident. They further shared a video where a woman in a blue Civic appears to flip off Ramaswamy and honk her horn while backing out. There was no video of the actual collision.
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