House Oversight Committee Hearing Sees Marjorie Taylor Greene Trade Barbs With AOC & Crockett

Edited by: Fern Sidman

A House Oversight Committee hearing intended to discuss a contempt resolution against Attorney General Merrick Garland descended into chaos Thursday night as lawmakers engaged in personal attacks and body-shaming, as was reported by the New York Post, The altercation primarily involved Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas).

MTG on fire 🔥 because DEMOCRAT corruption so out of control she triggers DEMOCRATS with a question and some Jasmine Crockett style attacks.

Don’t like it Jasmine Crockett and AOC❓ You’ve done dished it out far too long baby girls 😜 pic.twitter.com/8J7MmLWtJy

— 🇺🇸 ʟᴇғᴛ ᴄᴏᴀˢᴛ ᴠᴀɢʀᴀɴᴛ 🇺🇸 (@Baklava_USA) May 17, 2024

The hearing took an unexpected turn when Rep. Greene deviated from the topic at hand and brought up the daughter of the Manhattan judge presiding over former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial, according to the Post report. This led to a series of confrontations that quickly spiraled out of control.

“I’d like to know if any of the Democrats on this committee are employing Judge [Juan] Merchan’s daughter,” Greene queried, implying a conflict of interest. The Post report indicated that this provoked a strong reaction from Rep. Crockett, who demanded clarification on how this related to the hearing’s purpose.

“What does that have to do with Merrick Garland?” Crockett asked pointedly. She further questioned Greene’s awareness of the hearing’s agenda, asking, “Do you know what we’re here for?”

Greene responded with a personal attack, saying, “I think you know what you’re here for. I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading,” the Post report pointed out. This comment sparked immediate outrage in the chamber.

Democratic ranking member Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) intervened, denouncing Greene’s remark as beneath the dignity of the committee. “That’s beneath even you Ms. Greene!” he exclaimed, according to the Post. Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) struggled to restore order, repeatedly slamming his gavel and calling for decorum.

Rep. Ocasio-Cortez also reacted strongly, condemning Greene’s comment and demanding it be stricken from the record. “That is absolutely unacceptable!” she shouted, further escalating the tensions in the room.

“How dare you attack the physical appearance of another person!” Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the progressive “Squad,” exclaimed, the Post reported, as she defended Rep. Crockett against Greene’s earlier comments about her appearance.

Greene responded by mocking Ocasio-Cortez’s anger. “Are your feelings hurt? Aww,” she said, to which Ocasio-Cortez retorted, “Oh! Girl, baby, girl! Don’t even play!”

The exchange intensified with Greene dismissing Ocasio-Cortez’s retort. “Oh, Really? Baby girl? I don’t think so,” Greene said. Despite agreeing to strike her words from the record, Greene refused to apologize to Crockett. “I am not apologizing,” she declared, according to the Post. She then challenged Ocasio-Cortez to a debate. “Why don’t you debate me!” she demanded.

“I think it’s pretty self-evident!” Ocasio-Cortez shot back, rejecting the challenge. The Post reported that Greene continued with her provocations, “Yeah, you don’t have enough intelligence,” resulting in groans from the chamber and renewed requests to strike her words from the record.

As the situation seemed to be settling down, Rep. Crockett seized the opportunity to address the chaos, questioning Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) about what constitutes a personal attack, as was indicated in the Post report. She asked Comer, “I’m just curious. To better understand your ruling, if someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody’s bleached blonde, bad-built, butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?”

A visibly confused Comer responded, “A what now?” The Post report said that he then admitted, “I have no idea what you just said,” looking exasperated by the turn of events.

Crockett’s remark appeared to amuse Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), whose eyes widened as he tried to hide a smile while looking around the room. The tension in the room continued to escalate as lawmakers shouted over one another.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) attempted to calm the situation, telling Crockett, “Calm down.” However, the report in the Post said that Crockett refused to back down, shouting over the noise, “No! Don’t tell me to calm down because y’all talk noise and then you can’t take it!”