Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a rising star of the Democratic Party, has admonished a Republican congressman who allegedly hurled a sexist slur at her on the steps of the US Capitol.
Ms Ocasio-Cortez, 30, a progressive from New York popularly known as "AOC," said Florida Representative Ted Yoho had "put his finger in my face".
"He called me disgusting, he called me crazy, he called me out of my mind," Ms Ocasio-Cortez said during a nearly ten-minute speech on the floor of the House of Representatives.
"In front of reporters, Representative Yoho called me - and I quote -- a 'f****** b*****,'" she said.
Ms Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest member of Congress, said she was not looking for an apology from 65-year-old Mr Yoho, but that his behaviour was symptomatic of a wider problem of attitudes towards women.
"What we are seeing is that incidents like these are happening in a pattern," she said. "This is a pattern of an attitude towards women and dehumanisation of others."
"All of us have had to deal with this in some form," she continued. "I have waited tables in restaurants. I have tossed men out of bars that have used language like Mr Yoho's.
"This is not new and that is the problem. It is cultural.
"It is a culture of lack of impunity, of accepting of violence and violent language against women, an entire structure of power that supports that.
"Because not only have I been spoken to disrespectfully, particularly by members of the Republican Party.
"But the President of the United States last year told me to go home to another country with the implication that I don't even belong in America."
Rep @AOC: "I do not need Rep. Yoho to apologize to me. Clearly he does not want to. Clearly when given the opportunity he will not & I will not stay up late at night waiting for an apology from a man who has no remorse over calling women & using abusive language towards women." pic.twitter.com/XKymFh3Oyf
— CSPAN (@cspan) July 23, 2020
Ms Ocasio-Cortez is of Puerto Rican origin but was born and raised in New York City.
Speaking on the House floor yesterday, Mr Yoho apologised "for the abrupt manner of the conversation I had with my colleague from New York" but denied calling her an "offensive name".
"Having been married for 45 years with two daughters, I'm very cognisant of my language.
"Offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleague, and if they were construed that way, I apologise for their misunderstanding.
"I cannot apologise for my passion, for loving my God, my family and my country."
Ms Ocasio-Cortez's comments were the latest in an escalating feud that started on Monday, when "The Hill" newspaper said that one of its reporters overheard Mr Yoho's comments.
According to the newspaper, Mr Yoho had a brief exchange with Ms Ocasio-Cortez in which he called her "disgusting" for previously suggesting that unemployment and poverty due to the Covid-19 pandemic is leading to a spike in crime in New York City.
Mr Yoho told her she was out of her "freaking mind", the paper reported, and walked off with Republican Texas Congressman Roger Williams.
As they parted ways, the newspaper said Mr Yoho uttered the derogatory comments.
