Republican U.S. presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has alleged that two protesters deliberately crashed their vehicle into his campaign's parked SUV in Iowa. However, local police have stated that there is no evidence to support the claim that the collision was intentional.
The incident occurred in Grinnell, Iowa, on Thursday when a blue Honda Civic, driven by a female with one passenger, reportedly struck the rear of Ramaswamy's campaign SUV, which was parked at the time. The alleged protesters left the scene immediately.
Ramaswamy posted on X, stating, "Had a civil exchange with protesters today, right before two of them then got into their car & rammed it into ours. Those two should be held accountable, but the rest of the peaceful protesters shouldn't be tarred by the behavior of two bad actors." Fortunately, there were no injuries in the incident.
Ramaswamy was not in the vehicle when the collision occurred. He explained, "I was attending a campaign event earlier today and was met by a small group of protesters. I respectfully answered their questions and thanked them for expressing their views even if I disagreed with them. What happened next was a step too far. One of the protesters got into their car and appeared to crash into my car at the event, gave them the middle finger, and drove off."
Ramaswamy's campaign attributed the collision to protesters who were apparently angry about his statements regarding aid for Ukraine. They claimed that the protesters yelled and swore at the presidential candidate before getting into a vehicle, crashing into the campaign car, and speeding away.
While Ramaswamy asserts that he is a free speech absolutist, he expressed that he will continue to support the right to peaceful protest but condemns any form of physical escalation.
The Grinnell Police Department conducted an investigation and found no evidence to substantiate the claim that protesters intentionally struck Ramaswamy's vehicle. Instead, they determined that a patron who had eaten lunch at a restaurant backed out of a parking spot and collided with the campaign's rental vehicle. The driver received a summons for unsafe backing.
Ramaswamy's campaign has stood by its initial report that protesters were responsible for the collision. They provided a video clip to support their claim, showing Ramaswamy walking in Grinnell while a blue Honda driver honked and appeared to gesture offensively.
Ramaswamy's comments during the first Republican presidential debate of the 2024 campaign indicated his opposition to U.S. government funding for Ukraine, which he argued would be better spent on domestic border security.
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