Staten Island Chicken Little Flummoxed By Eighth Grader

Rep. Grimm earns his name:

An eighth grader has copped to vandalizing the campaign headquarters of Rep. Michael Grimm (R-NY), the Associated Press reports.

New York Police Department spokesperson Paul Browne told the AP on Tuesday that the teenager confessed to a guidance counselor that over the weekend he and a friend had broken a window at the Staten Island office. The teenager is expected to be charged as a juvenile with criminal mischief.

...Grimm, a former FBI agent, spoke with the Staten Island Advance on Sunday night and emphasized that the incident was being taken very seriously.

“You know, especially in light of what happened with Gabby Giffords, we’re not in the world today where we can shrug things off,” Grimm told the Staten Island Advance. “Violence is violence. Throwing large stones and concrete through the window is an act of violence, and we’ve got to take it seriously.”

He also released a statement, calling the incident “an assault on democracy and the political process.”

“This is a disgraceful act of cowardice that is beneath the people I represent,” Grimm said. “Here in Staten Island, we are a family community, which is why, despite our differences in opinions and political views, we have never seen an attack on a campaign escalate to this level. In 2010, campaigns across the nation were fueled with high levels of passion, yet even then we never saw anything as dirty or disgraceful as this. Even though this is not an official office, this heinous act represents an assault on democracy and the political process, more so than it does on me as person or a candidate. I do believe this is a politically motivated crime, and will continue to work closely with the NYPD in identifying and prosecuting those responsible.”

...“What is most troubling about this series of events is the shameless media spin and speculation fueled by unscrupulous sources,” he said. “This is no more than another blatant attempt by the liberal media to generate more bogus allegations against me and continue their ongoing smear campaign.”