CNN White House reporter Jim Acosta assaulted a female White House staffer trying to take a White House mic back from him as he engaged in an extended argument with President Trump at Wednesday’s post-mid term election press conference.

UPDATE: Alternative view with clearer perspective that shows Acosta forcefully fighting off the female staffer:

https://twitter.com/realDonaldVoter/status/1060251132063178752

Video shows Acosta forcefully blocking and pushing back on the woman staffer away, knocking her off balance as she tries to take the microphone from him first with her right hand and then her left hand.

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Jim Acosta.

A video clip was posted by NBC News with a caption that blames the woman, “BREAKING: White House aide grabs and tries to physically remove a microphone from CNN Correspondent Jim Acosta during a contentious exchange with President Trump at a news conference.”

BREAKING: White House aide grabs and tries to physically remove a microphone from CNN Correspondent Jim Acosta during a contentious exchange with President Trump at a news conference. pic.twitter.com/fFm7wclFw2 — NBC News (@NBCNews) November 7, 2018

At about the five second mark Acosta does a quick tomahawk chop on the woman’s left arm, briefly knocking her off balance by as she reaches for the mic.

Acosta’s actions appear to meet Cornell Law’s definition of ‘assault and battery’.

“In an act of physical violence by one person against another, “assault” is usually paired with battery. In an act of physical violence, assault refers to the act which causes the victim to apprehend imminent physical harm, while battery refers to the actual act causing the physical harm.”

CNN posted a statement defending Acosta: “This President’s ongoing attacks on the press have gone too far/ They are not only dangerous, they are disturbingly un-American. While President Trump has made it clear he does not respect a free press, he has a sworn obligation to protect it. A free press is vital to democracy, and we stand behind Jim Acosta and his fellow journalists everywhere.”