WASHINGTON -- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., went to the defense of Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., on Saturday -- denouncing what she called "faux-outrage" over profane language Tlaib used while calling for President Donald Trump's impeachment.
"Republican hypocrisy at its finest: saying that Trump admitting to sexual assault on tape is just 'locker room talk,' but scandalizing themselves into faux-outrage when my sis says a curse word in a bar," Ocasio-Cortez wrote. "GOP lost entitlement to policing women's behavior a long time ago. Next."
Speaking directly to Tlaib, who on Thursday became the first Palestinian-American woman sworn in as a member of Congress, Ocasio-Cortez added: "I got your back."
Ocasio-Cortez's comments come in response to a wave of criticism aimed toward Tlaib, who spoke candidly during a Thursday night reception for progressive group MoveOn.org. In a video that went viral, she used an expletive while vowing that the Democrat-controlled House would focus its efforts on removing Trump from office.
"Don't you ever, ever, let anybody take away your roots, your culture, who you are. Ever," Tlaib told the crowd in the packed space. "Because when you [hang on to those things], people love you and you win. And when your son looks at you and says, 'Mama, look. You won. Bullies don't win.'
"And I said, 'Baby, they don't,' because we're gonna go in there and we're gonna impeach the m * * * * * f * * * * *."
In her tweet, Ocasio-Cortez seems to refer to a recorded 2005 conversation between Trump and Billy Bush that emerged before the 2016 presidential election. In the video clip, Trump is heard bragging about kissing, groping and trying to have sex with women.
Trump later brushed off the conversation as "locker-room banter."
Although Ocasio-Cortez went to Tlaib's defense, several of her Democratic colleagues showed concern with the choice of words by the representative from Michigan. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., characterized the speech as "inappropriate" and potentially distracting and counterproductive for Democrats.
Those on the right expressed anger -- spearheaded by Trump, who called Tlaib's comments "disgraceful."
"I assume she's new. I think she dishonored herself, and I think she dishonored her family," Trump said at a news conference. "I thought it was highly disrespectful to the United States of America."
On Fox News, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., accused Tlaib of attacking the president.
"Look at the brand-new elected congresswoman and her language of what she says to her son in a rally that she thought was private last night," McCarthy said. "Their whole focus here is to try and attack this president when we're trying to move America forward."
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said Friday that Tlaib "took the politics of Washington deeper down the drain."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., acknowledged "legitimate" anger over Trump but said it was premature to be talking about impeachment. Pelosi has often said lawmakers need to let special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election play out.
Pelosi also said she didn't like Tlaib's language but was "not in the censorship business" -- and suggested there wouldn't have been so much hand-wringing over Tlaib's comments if she were a man.
"What she said is less offensive than what President Trump said about John McCain," Pelosi said.
On Friday, Tlaib showed no indication that she would apologize or back down from her remarks.
"I will always speak truth to power," she wrote, adding the hashtag #unapologeticallyMe.
A Section on 01/06/2019