In Congressman's Selfie With 6th-Graders, a Middle Finger

It's probably not a photo that mom is going to frame. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida made a stop at Shoal River Middle School in Crestview on Tuesday to talk civics, but things concluded with some not-exactly-civil behavior. Gaetz posed for a selfie with sixth graders and posted it to Facebook, where it shows a smiling Gaetz in the lower left—and a girl with her middle finger raised in the lower right. (See the photo here.) Fox News reports the GOP congressman took it in stride, saying he had an "occasional lapse of judgement" at that age.

Northwest Florida Daily News reports that one of the commenters on the photo identified herself as the girl's mother, offered an apology for the "unacceptable move," and wrote that she would "be dealing with her at home tonight! I absolutely have raised her better than this, and I promise this will NEVER happen again! I have been dealing with her wanting to 'fit in' and I promise you, I am livid." Gaetz says he'll keep the photo up. "I'm not really someone who criticizes how they express themselves." (This driver flipped off police, and then found himself in trouble.)