AOC and Marjorie Taylor Greene Clash in Heated Hearing, AOC Slams Fetterman for Mocking Markup

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene traded barbs during a House Oversight Committee hearing on Attorney General Merrick Garland's contempt, while Ocasio-Cortez criticized fellow Democrat Sen. John Fetterman for comparing the hearing to "The Jerry Springer Show."

On Thursday, the House's Oversight and Judiciary Committees convened to consider holding Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for his handling of the Justice Department's investigation into the January 6 Capitol riot. The markup for a resolution to hold Garland in contempt of Congress, however, descended into a shouting match involving several representatives, including Ocasio-Cortez, Greene, and Jasmine Crockett, a fellow Democrat from Texas.

During the hearing, Greene criticized Crockett's appearance, saying, "I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you're reading." Ocasio-Cortez immediately condemned Greene's remarks as "unacceptable" and demanded that they be stricken from the record.

"Are your feelings hurt?" Greene asked mockingly.

"Oh girl, baby girl! Don’t even play!" Ocasio-Cortez retorted.

The exchange highlighted the deep divisions within the House, with Ocasio-Cortez and Greene representing the polarizing left and right wings of the chamber.

Following the hearing, Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat who has emerged as a vocal critic of his own party, likened the display to "The Jerry Springer Show," a decades-long reality program known for its sensationalistic content.

"In the past, I’ve described the U.S. House as The Jerry Springer Show," Fetterman wrote on Twitter. "Today, I’m apologizing to The Jerry Springer Show."

Ocasio-Cortez responded to Fetterman's comments, criticizing him for mocking her altercation with Greene and for failing to stand up for his fellow Democrat.

"I stand up to bullies, instead of becoming one. And to the women of Pennsylvania: I’d stand up for you too," she wrote.

"I understand you likely would not have stood up for your colleague and seem to be confused about racism and misogyny being a ‘both sides’ issue."

Fetterman's office responded to Ocasio-Cortez's post, saying that the senator had been responding to an "absurd screaming match of personal attacks in an unhinged House committee hearing."

The clash between AOC, Greene, and Fetterman underscores the escalating tensions within the Democratic Party, as well as the growing frustration with the House's inability to conduct its business in a civil and orderly manner.