YORK — Scott Wagner, Pennsylvania’s Republican candidate for governor, stirred up controversy by threatening to “stomp all over” the face of incumbent Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf “with golf spikes” in a video posted on his Facebook page.
“Governor Wolf, let me tell you, between now and November 6th, you better put a catcher’s mask on your face because I’m gonna stomp all over your face with golf spikes because I’m gonna win this for the state of Pennsylvania, and we’re throwing you out of office because you know what, I’m sick and tired of your negative ads,” Wagner said in Facebook Live video Friday morning.
The response from Wolf’s team was swift.
“This is disgusting,” press secretary J.J. Abbott said in a tweet on Friday.
Abbott later tweeted a link to a newspaper article from 12 days ago, which quoted Wagner pleading for “a return to respect, and a return to the politics of decency.”
“Scott Wagner has lost it,” tweeted John Fetterman, the Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor.
Wagner’s communications staff issued this statement in response to the video:
“Scott’s comments were not to be taken literally. He wanted them to be a metaphor for how he will approach the final stretch of the campaign. Tom Wolf has spent the entire race hiding behind false and negative attack ads like a coward instead of debating in front of the people of Pennsylvania and Scott will spend the last month of the race making it clear to voters why they should not give him a second term.”
Many of the more than 600 comments posted under the video were supportive of Wagner.
“Mr. Wagner will be the best Governor the State of PA has EVER had!” one supporter wrote. “Thank God he is running, and it is up to us to Vote him into that job!! Nov. 6th!!”
“Wagner is the right one, not Wolf,” wrote another.
The Wagner Campaign deleted the video about five hours after posting it. He then explained why he took the video down.
