Bloomberg reporter says he was ‘physically shoved’ by staffer for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson
A Bloomberg reporter said he was "physically shoved" by a staffer for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Friday.
Ian Kullgren, a Bloomberg Law reporter, first posted his claim on X.
"A staffer for @ChicagosMayor just physically shoved me for trying to ask the mayor a question. 1st time in 15 years as a reporter I’ve had anything like this happen. Unbelievable," Kullgren wrote.
In another social media post, Kullgren said the staffer was a female, writing that he "didn’t get her name."
"It was a woman. I don’t shove women," Kullgren responded to a user who suggested he should have retaliated.
Kullgren said Mayor Johnson saw the alleged incident.
"The mayor gave no indication he didn’t want to talk to me until his staffer started shoving me. He saw the whole thing happen and didn’t intervene," Kullgren told Fox News Digital via email when asked for additional comment.
"Public officials shouldn’t tolerate that kind of behavior, in my view," Kullgren continued. "I hope he treats his constituents in Chicago better."
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Bloomberg Industry Group said it had no comment.
Mayor Johnson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this month, Johnson was pressed about his management of the city amid its migrant crisis and whether it means raising taxes on citizens.
Johnson has warned that the crisis is "not sustainable" and has called for further federal assistance to help his city address the growing number of migrants after Republican governors like Greg Abbott of Texas have sent buses of asylum seekers to Democratic-controlled states and sanctuary cities.
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CBS Chicago reporter Sabrina Franza confronted Johnson about his management of the city during an in-person interview, arguing that his constituents are feeling neglected by his prioritization of foreign migrants.
However, Kullgren said his question would have been much easier for the mayor.
"I wanted to get a quote from him about unions’ efforts to translate recent victories into new organizing and membership recruitment. Should have been an easy one for him," Kullgren said.
Fox News’ Alexander Hall and Nikolas Lanum contributed to this report.