N.Y. Democrat to Press Complaint : Dornan Threatened Him, Colleague Says

Rep. Thomas Downey (D-N.Y.) charged Monday that Republican Rep. Robert Dornan of Buena Park grabbed him by the collar and tie and threatened him with “bodily harm” on the floor of the House of Representatives.

Dornan admitted that he had held Downey’s tie but said that it was because it “needed to be straightened.” He conceded that he had called Downey “a wimp” for criticizing anti-Sandinista rebels in Nicaragua and had said “get out of my face,” but denied making any threats.

Downey, in a separate interview after the incident, said he planned to press a formal complaint against the Dornan with House Sergeant-at-Arms Jack Russ on Tuesday.

“I think he owes me and the House an apology. Our constituents sent us here to agree and disagree--not to threaten one another,” Downey said.

The altercation caused a minor disturbance in the House as other members rushed to see what the commotion was and to see if either Downey or Dornan needed assistance.

Stories Differ

Dornan denied that the argument was ever close to a fist fight, but Downey claimed that “the facts are completely different. Mr. Dornan knows that.”

Both congressmen agree how the fracas started--Downey asked Dornan whether it was true that he had called him “wimp” in a talk to a convention in Washington on Saturday.

But the two gave different versions of the encounter from that point forward.

According to Downey, “He (Dornan) proceeded to get very excited about that and other issues. When I attempted to walk away from him, he grabbed my collar. It’s difficult to turn the other cheek when someone’s got you by the collar and tie.

“He said, ‘It’s good you’re being protected by the sergeant-at-arms. If I saw you outside, it would be a different story.’ He threatened me with some form of bodily harm.”

Dornan in relating the incident said, “He tapped me on the shoulder and wanted to know if I had called him a ‘wimp.’ I said, ‘Yes. You are a wimp.’

‘Confronted With the Truth’

“He turned white. He was confronted with the truth. I didn’t pull on his tie at all. I just straightened it out for him. It was crooked and it needed to be straightened.”

Downey said he was surprised and distressed by Dornan’s actions. “It wasn’t any way for an elected representative to behave,” he said.

Dornan said he called Downey a “wimp” because of the New York liberal Democrat’s repeated criticism of U.S.-backed rebel forces fighting against Nicaragua’s Sandinista regime.

“He called them ‘thugs,’ ” Dornan said in an interview.

“Downey and others don’t have the courage to say ‘thug’ to the contra forces to their faces,” Dornan said.