

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.


Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wears a face mask as she walks down the House steps of the U.S. Capitol on April 23, 2020.(Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was verbally accosted--including being called a "fucking bitch"--by Republican colleague Rep. Ted Yoho Monday afternoon on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building over her remarks earlier this month tying a rise in New York City crime to increased levels of poverty and housing insecurity in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"That kind of confrontation hasn't ever happened to me--ever," Ocasio-Cortez told The Hill's Mike Illis--who reported that the exchange was witnessed by a journalist--shortly after the encounter. "I've never had that kind of abrupt, disgusting kind of disrespect levied at me."
The progressive Democratic lawmaker was confronted by Yoho, a Florida Republican, for her comments as the two passed each other on the steps of the Capitol building in "an unusually personal exchange." According to Illis, Yoho called Ocasio-Cortez "freaking crazy," while the New York congresswoman fired back that the GOP legislator was being "rude."
After Ocasio-Cortez walked away, Yoho was overheard calling her a "fucking bitch."
Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas), who was walking with Yoho, told Illis that he didn't notice much of the exchange.
"I was actually thinking, as I was walking down the stairs, I was thinking about some issues I've got in my district that need to get done," Williams told Illis. "I don't know what their topic was. There's always a topic, isn't there?"
Progressives expressed outrage over Yoho's remarks and solidarity with Ocasio-Cortez, a regular target of right-wing attacks.
"This culture of vitriol does a disservice to America," tweeted Shahid Buttar, , a progressive Democrat challenging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her congressional seat in California. "Right wing voices feel threatened by our voices--and with good reason."
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) noted the sexist undertones to the attack and wondered why Yoho hasn't confronted others with similar views to Ocasio-Cortez.
"Like AOC, I believe poverty to be a root cause of crime," tweeted Phillips. "Wonder why Rep. Yoho hasn't accosted me on the Capitol steps with the same sentiment?"
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was verbally accosted--including being called a "fucking bitch"--by Republican colleague Rep. Ted Yoho Monday afternoon on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building over her remarks earlier this month tying a rise in New York City crime to increased levels of poverty and housing insecurity in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"That kind of confrontation hasn't ever happened to me--ever," Ocasio-Cortez told The Hill's Mike Illis--who reported that the exchange was witnessed by a journalist--shortly after the encounter. "I've never had that kind of abrupt, disgusting kind of disrespect levied at me."
The progressive Democratic lawmaker was confronted by Yoho, a Florida Republican, for her comments as the two passed each other on the steps of the Capitol building in "an unusually personal exchange." According to Illis, Yoho called Ocasio-Cortez "freaking crazy," while the New York congresswoman fired back that the GOP legislator was being "rude."
After Ocasio-Cortez walked away, Yoho was overheard calling her a "fucking bitch."
Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas), who was walking with Yoho, told Illis that he didn't notice much of the exchange.
"I was actually thinking, as I was walking down the stairs, I was thinking about some issues I've got in my district that need to get done," Williams told Illis. "I don't know what their topic was. There's always a topic, isn't there?"
Progressives expressed outrage over Yoho's remarks and solidarity with Ocasio-Cortez, a regular target of right-wing attacks.
"This culture of vitriol does a disservice to America," tweeted Shahid Buttar, , a progressive Democrat challenging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her congressional seat in California. "Right wing voices feel threatened by our voices--and with good reason."
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) noted the sexist undertones to the attack and wondered why Yoho hasn't confronted others with similar views to Ocasio-Cortez.
"Like AOC, I believe poverty to be a root cause of crime," tweeted Phillips. "Wonder why Rep. Yoho hasn't accosted me on the Capitol steps with the same sentiment?"
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was verbally accosted--including being called a "fucking bitch"--by Republican colleague Rep. Ted Yoho Monday afternoon on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Building over her remarks earlier this month tying a rise in New York City crime to increased levels of poverty and housing insecurity in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"That kind of confrontation hasn't ever happened to me--ever," Ocasio-Cortez told The Hill's Mike Illis--who reported that the exchange was witnessed by a journalist--shortly after the encounter. "I've never had that kind of abrupt, disgusting kind of disrespect levied at me."
The progressive Democratic lawmaker was confronted by Yoho, a Florida Republican, for her comments as the two passed each other on the steps of the Capitol building in "an unusually personal exchange." According to Illis, Yoho called Ocasio-Cortez "freaking crazy," while the New York congresswoman fired back that the GOP legislator was being "rude."
After Ocasio-Cortez walked away, Yoho was overheard calling her a "fucking bitch."
Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas), who was walking with Yoho, told Illis that he didn't notice much of the exchange.
"I was actually thinking, as I was walking down the stairs, I was thinking about some issues I've got in my district that need to get done," Williams told Illis. "I don't know what their topic was. There's always a topic, isn't there?"
Progressives expressed outrage over Yoho's remarks and solidarity with Ocasio-Cortez, a regular target of right-wing attacks.
"This culture of vitriol does a disservice to America," tweeted Shahid Buttar, , a progressive Democrat challenging House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her congressional seat in California. "Right wing voices feel threatened by our voices--and with good reason."
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) noted the sexist undertones to the attack and wondered why Yoho hasn't confronted others with similar views to Ocasio-Cortez.
"Like AOC, I believe poverty to be a root cause of crime," tweeted Phillips. "Wonder why Rep. Yoho hasn't accosted me on the Capitol steps with the same sentiment?"