Raskin says it's 'worth investigating' whether House members were drinking in hearing room
Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.), the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, says it’s “worth investigating” whether lawmakers were drinking during Thursday’s explosive hearing, after rumors circulated that noncommittee members were intoxicated.
“I didn’t see the drinking by the gentlelady from New Mexico, Melanie Stansbury raised it, she said there are members drinking in the room, and that’s something that is worth investigating if there was in fact drinking taking place,” Raksin said on Fox News.
According to Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) there were “some members in the room who are drinking inside the hearing room.” Stansbury said the lawmakers who were drinking were not on the committee, Axios reported.
On Thursday night, the Oversight Committee hearing became chaotic as Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) fought after Greene accused Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) of wearing “fake eyelashes.”
The committee was holding a markup hearing to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress but fell into chaos with the lawmakers shouting over one another for nearly an hour.
It began with a vote on whether to allow Greene to continue speaking during the hearing. Greene asked if any Democrats on the panel were employing the daughter of Judge Juan Merchan, the judge overseeing former President Trump’s hush money trial.
Thursday’s hearing was delayed a few hours after several Republicans who sit on the panel went to New York in the morning to support Trump in his trial. Crockett questioned why Greene would bring up Merchan and the two began arguing.
Crockett asked Greene if she knew “what we’re here for?”
“I don’t think you know what you’re here for,” Greene responded. “I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading.”
At that point, Raskin interjected, saying, “that’s beneath even you, Ms. Greene.”
Ocasio-Cortez said it was “disgusting” and “absolutely unacceptable” to attack the physical appearance of another person.
After a short break, the two lawmakers continued the argument, with Greene insulting Ocasio-Cortez’s intelligence and saying she would “never” apologize for her comments.
Later, Crockett hit back at Greene, alluding in a question on a ruling that she has a “bleach blond, bad built, butch body.”
She said Friday that she believes Greene’s original comment was “absolutely” racist.
The entire scene drew criticism from both sides of the aisle, with Democrats and Republicans agreeing on at least one thing: It was not a good look for the Congress.