Bishop said he should not have hit him on the Senate floor, but that the Democratic Senator deserved to be punched, and that Bishop would do it again under the same circumstances.

Spectators reported that Bishop punched Barron, and that it took six people to pull him off the other senator. Bishop said that the incident occurred after Barron called him a “son of a bitch” while they were still on the Senate Floor.

Barron denied callling him that and said he is still considering whether to pursue criminal charges.

“Nothing I did was provacative,” he said.

But Bishop disagreed, saying he had heard the statement and responded accordingly.

“I responded with my right hand,” he said. “I hit him wherever I could get my right hand on him.”

He apologized for it happening on the floor of the Senate, but did not apologize for the action he took in response to the remarks.

“If he calls me that again, it will happen again,” he said.
The argument occurred after Bishop had asked Barron and other Democratic Senators to allow a bill prohibiting funds from being transferred between political action committees. Republicans had hoped to bring up the bill earlier today.

“I’m getting tired of getting damned run over,” Bishop said as Democrats continued to block the bill from being heard.