After Wednesday’s non-apology by Rep. Ted Yoho (R-FL), New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to the House floor where she said of the retiring Republican:
“I do not need Representative Yoho to apologize to me. Clearly he does not want to. Clearly when given the opportunity he will not. And 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.”
Here is my full response regarding Mr. Yoho and the culture of misogyny that inspired his actions.
I am deeply appreciative of my colleagues and everyone speaking up and out against the rampant mistreatment of women both in Congress and across the country. ⬇️ https://t.co/nFfxy5UdmP
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 23, 2020
The Hill reports:
Yoho (R-Fla.) was coming down the steps on the east side of the Capitol on Monday, having just voted, when he approached Ocasio-Cortez, who was ascending into the building to cast a vote of her own.
In a brief but heated exchange, which was overheard by a reporter, Yoho told Ocasio-Cortez she was “disgusting” for recently suggesting that poverty and unemployment are driving a spike in crime in New York City during the coronavirus pandemic.
“You are out of your freaking mind,” Yoho told her.
A reporter who heard the exchange says after walking away, Yoho murmured “f*cking bitch.” AOC recounted this during her speech today, including using the specific language used against her. The NYC congresswoman added:
“Mr. Yoho was not alone, he was walking shoulder to shoulder with Rep. Roger Williams and that’s when we start to see that this issue is not about one incident, it’s cultural. It is culture of lack of impunity, of accepting of violence and violent language against women and an entire structure of power that supports that. Because not only have I been spoken to disrespectfully, particularly by members of the Republican party and officials of the Republican party, not just here 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. The governor of Florida, Governor DeSantis, before I was even sworn in, called me a whatever that is. Dehumanizing language is not new. And what we are seeing now is that incidents like these are happening in a pattern. This is a pattern of an attitude towards women and dehumanization of others.”
There's a lot going on, but there's a reason @AOC's speech today on the House floor is resonating. She says what for too long has gone unsaid. Silence is not an option. The moment for reckoning with misogyny and harassment, in Congress, and in the country, is here.
— Dan Rather (@DanRather) July 23, 2020
Watch the entire takedown above.