HELENA – A Montana justice of the peace used his government email account to insult a reporter over critical coverage of a right-wing conspiracy theory.
Lewis and Clark County Justice of the Peace Michael Swingley told the Independent Record Friday he “lashed out” at Washington Post reporter Avi Selk because he felt frustrated and overwhelmed.
Selk tweeted Swingley’s email blasting coverage of QAnon, an anonymous poster on an online message board. QAnon is favored by Trump supporters because of posts about the “deep state” battling the president and other conspiracy theories.
Swingley writes that “patriots are uniting against people like” Selk, and that the “world of fake news and liberal agendas … is coming to an end.”
He closes with, “Wait for it … you pathetic, snobby ass.”
Swingley said using his work email “was not the best decision.”