Andy Harris clashes with audience and reporters after debate

Rep. Andy Harris clashed with audience members during an October 13 debate in Cambridge, Maryland, then confronted reporters who recorded him after the event, saying they lacked his permission and threatening to refer them to a prosecutor. The reporter he called out was not removed by police, according to accounts of the encounter. The exchanges followed a League of Women Voters forum with Democratic challenger Dan Schwartz in Maryland’s 1st Congressional District. During a discussion of diesel prices, Harris began explaining why costs had risen when audience members laughed and interrupted. He criticized them as rude and said they should let him finish. The moderator intervened as interruptions continued, and Schwartz urged the audience to allow both candidates to be heard. Harris had said diesel prices were up and began attributing the increase to Democrats and environmental regulations. He did not finish the explanation during the exchange. Federal energy officials have attributed recent price increases to tight global supplies of distillate fuel and elevated crude-oil prices, among other factors, according to information cited in coverage of the debate.