Donald Trump's secretary of the Army nominee allegedly punched a concessions worker in the face at a horse auction

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 19 January 2017

President-elect Donald Trump's pick for secretary of the Army allegedly punched a concessions worker in the face at a horse auction last year, The New York Times reports.

Vincent Viola — a billionaire Wall Street trader, former Army Ranger, and the owner of the Florida Panthers hockey team — was attending the racehorse auction in Saratoga Springs, New York, last August, when the incident is said to have occurred. While the police did not see Viola actually punch the concessions worker, when they arrived on the scene the employee had a "swollen, bloody lip."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Vincent … was notified by his wife, Theresa, that a man who worked for the food service at the horse sales had pushed her after she tried to get some water from the kitchen area for a woman who had just fainted in the building. Vincent states about 45 minutes after the incident occurred, Theresa located the subject who had pushed her and then pointed him out to Vincent. Vincent then reportedly confronted the subject, [redacted], [and the] two subjects then engaged in a verbal dispute. [Redacted] states the argument escalated with Viola punching him just prior to my arrival on scene. [Redacted] sustained a swollen, bloody lip as a result of the alleged punch. [via Deadspin]

Explore More

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.