Kentucky stomper says he hit victim because of back problems, and now seeks apology

Tim Profitt, the Kentucky man and Rand Paul supporter who was featured in videos stomping on the head of a MoveOn.org activist, is now blaming a bad back in his decision to attack the liberal activist -- and says he wants an apology. Via TPM:

Tim Profitt -- the former Rand Paul volunteer who stomped on the head of a MoveOn activist -- told told local CBS station WKYT that he wants an apology from the woman he stomped and that she started the whole thing.

"I don't think it's that big of a deal," Profitt said. "I would like for her to apologize to me to be honest with you."

"She's a professional at what she does," Profitt added, "and I think when all the facts come out, I think people will see that she was the one that initiated the whole thing."

Rand Paul (above right) is the Republican nominee for Senate in Kentucky. Earlier, Profitt had blamed his stomping incident on back pain. From WKYT TV:

But to Tim Profitt, the the situation is much different. He says what the video doesn't show is Valle's aggressive behavior. Profitt says she rushed Paul's car three different times; each time refusing to stop...

"We thought she was a danger; we didn't know what she was doing."

Profitt explained that he used his foot to try and keep her down because he can't bend over because of back problems. He also says police were alerted to watch her before Paul arrived because people in the crown recognized her as someone who may try and pull a stunt.

Valle, a Massachusetts native, later identified herself to police as a contract worker for the liberal activist group "moveon.org" who was hoping to get her picture taken with Paul with a sign. The sign was a satirical award that would be used to embarrass him. Profitt says he never meant to harm her.

"if she can hear this... All I was trying to do was hold her until police could get her."

The Paul campaign released a statement Tuesday saying they had identified one of the participants as a volunteer.

"The Paul for Senate campaign is extremely disappointed in, and condemns the actions of a supporter last night outside the KET debate. Whatever the perceived provocation, any level of aggression or violence is deplorable, and will not be tolerated by our campaign. The Paul campaign has disassociated itself from the volunteer who took part in this incident, and once again urges all activists -- on both sides -- to remember that their political passions should never manifest themselves in physical altercations of any kind."

But Paul wasn't as quick to describe the incident as violence when he appeared on Fox News Tuesday.

"There was a bit of a crowd control problem," Paul told Fox News' Martha MacCallum. "I don't want anybody though to be involved in things that aren't civil."

"And it is an unusual situation to have so many people so passionate on both sides jockeying back and forth," he added.

The original video of the stomping incident from Fox News channel 41 follows:

Watch this video on iPhone/iPad

A second video, which confirms that the protester didn't get anywhere close to Paul, was published to YouTube on Tuesday, Oct. 26.