Rand Paul's head stomping thugs identified

The man who stomped on the head of Lauren Valle outside the Conway/Paul debate came forward shortly after being ID'ed by a local blogger. Now Rand's county campaign co-ordinater Tim Profitt claims his beating up Ms. Valle was misunderstood. He claims he acted out of fear for Rand Paul's safety.

Rahter a weak argument since it's clear Ms. Valle was recognized as a lefty activist before the attack and she has no history of violence. Furthermore, the five burly guys that surrounded her and warned her that they "might have to take somebody out" in the name of "crowd control" makes the attack on her look pretty much premeditated.

In any event, Profitt is now a former campaign volunteer. Rand Paul has severed their relationship and scrubbed all references to Profitt from his websites. However, it was too late to pull the full page Rand Paul ad in the local paper featuring Profitt's endorsement.

The other guy who assisted in the attack on Ms. Vallee has also been ID'ed:

Profitt’s accomplice, who held Valle down while he stepped on her head, has been identified as tea party activist Mike Pezzano. Gawker reports Pezzano “belongs to Lexington’s Rand Paul Meetup group and is an “assistant organizer” for Kentucky Open Carry, a group that wants to make it legal to carry firearms openly and in public.”

Anyone who is still thinking of sitting out the vote this round should consider that these are the people who will win if you do. [Photo via Think Progress.]