Nancy Pelosi's Democratic primary challenger says 'outrage towards Pelosi remains thoroughly appropriate' even after an assailant beat the House speaker's husband with a hammer

Nancy Pelosi's husband was violently attacked by an assailant. Her Democratic primary challenger says outrage toward her remains "thoroughly appropriate".

• An assailant broke into Nancy Pelosi's home early Friday morning and "violently assaulted" her husband, Paul Pelosi.
• Shahid Buttar, Pelosi's Democratic primary challenger, rejected violence but said on Twitter: "Outrage towards Nancy Pelosi remains thoroughly appropriate."
• Paul Pelosi pumped millions in stock trades at a time when Congress is considering banning lawmakers and their spouses from trading stocks.

A few hours after an assailant broke into Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco home early Friday morning and "violently assaulted" her husband, Paul Pelosi, the House Speaker's Democratic primary challenger said "outrage towards Nancy Pelosi remains thoroughly appropriate."

Shahid Buttar, who came in third in the nonpartisan primary for California's 11th Congressional District, added: "Political violence is a terrible shame, yet also predictable when systems refuse to allow accountability for corruption through peaceful means."

"Political violence is never acceptable, but it is entirely predictable when institutions invite and insulate corruption," he told Insider in a statement. 

Buttar has long criticized Nancy Pelosi for her husband's extensive stock and stock-option trading amid a months-long debate on Capitol Hill over whether to ban lawmakers and their spouses from trading individual stocks.

"She spent 34 years enriching herself at the public's expense," Buttar told Insider earlier this year, adding that the "speaker of the House approaches the markets like a hedge fund manager instead of a guardian of the public interest."  

Financial conflicts of interest and rampant violations of existing stock-trading laws have become commonplace on Capitol Hill, as Insider revealed in its "Conflicted Congress" series. 

Buttar, however, went on say that assaulting lawmakers or their families is not appropriate.

"Assaulting policymakers—or their families—is not. It's a criminal act," he said in his tweet. 

—Shahid Buttar for Change (@ShahidForChange) October 28, 2022

Paul Pelosi, 82, was attacked by the alleged intruder — who is in police custody and identified as 42-year-old David DePape — with a hammer, causing him to suffer blunt force trauma to his head and body. CNN reported that the intruder shouted, "Where's Nancy? Where's Nancy" after entering the Pelosis' home. 

Paul Pelosi was taken to an area hospital and underwent surgery, according to NBC Bay Area. Nancy Pelosi's congressional office said Paul Pelosi is expected to make a full recovery.