Last night during the GOP convention, GQ sports blogger Nathaniel Friedman tweeted that he "would like to beat" to death Pat Smith, the mother of a victim of terrorism.
Smith is the mother of Sean Smith, a U.S. Foreign Service officer who died during the September 11, 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya. Smith spoke at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio on Monday night, saying she blamed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for the death of her son.
The remark angered Friedman, who tweeted to his 22,000 followers that he wanted to beat Smith to death.
"I don't care how many children Pat Smith lost I would like to beat her to death," Friedman tweeted.
Friedman did not initially take responsibility for the tweet, blaming Donald Trump for creating a climate that made him wish the death of another human being.
Please spare me the outrage over mock-extreme statements that are clearly commentary on the climate Trump hath wrought.
— Bethlehem Shoals (@freedarko) July 19, 2016
Eventually, Friedman did apologize—but only to the left-leaning segment of his audience.
Again, sorry to anyone I may have offended last night. Well, except for the right-wing mob that descended upon me while I slept.
— Bethlehem Shoals (@freedarko) July 19, 2016
Friedman deleted the tweet after someone advised him that if he didn't delete his tweet his Twitter account would be suspended.
I've been advised to delete that tweet lest my account be suspended. Done.
— Bethlehem Shoals (@freedarko) July 19, 2016
On Tuesday afternoon, Friedman issued a full-fledged apology that referred to his Monday night behavior as indefensible.
"Under no circumstances is it okay to invoke violence against women. As outraged as I was by parts of Pat Smith’s speech, to use this kind of language as a means of expressing that feeling was completely out of bounds. I also completely understand how, regardless of my intent, it was extremely triggering for a lot of people. And for that I am genuinely sorry.
I’ve also heard a lot this morning from people on the other side of the political spectrum. While I may disagree with these people on a number of matters, I know that what I wrote is utterly indefensible. The last thing this country needs is statements that make the climate even more toxic and divisive."
Friedman was not the only journalist to attack Smith. MSNBC host Chris Matthews ripped into her for giving a speech at the GOP convention, saying "I don't care what that woman up there, the mother, has felt."