Calling out Florida republican Ted Yoho’s non-apology for reportedly calling her a “fucking bitch” on the steps of the Capitol Wednesday morning, New York Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she wasn’t waiting orra genuine apology from her colleague.
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez: "Mr. Yoho mentioned that he has a wife and two daughters. I am two years younger than Mr. Yoho's youngest daughter. I am someone's daughter, too. My father, thankfully, is not alive to see how Mr. Yoho treated his daughter." https://t.co/U2UIEaCljG pic.twitter.com/kk701q80zW
— ABC News (@ABC) July 23, 2020
In an empty House chamber yesterday, Rep. Yoho claimed that he is “a man of his word” but failed to apologize to AOC personally. He apologized for the “abrupt manner of the conversation” he had with her.
Yoho noted that he has been married for 45 years with two daughter, he said he’s “very cognizant of my language” and claiming that the words attributed to him were “never spoken to my colleagues.”
“I cannot apologize for my passion” — @RepTedYoho’s “apology” to AOC pic.twitter.com/Bh30Phu8zp
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 22, 2020
In other words, he didn’t say them directly to Ocasio-Cortez’s face, but he did say them about her.
He went on to say, “… and if they were construed that way, I apologize for the misunderstanding.”
Yoho did not explain how calling someone a “fucking bitch” should be understood.
AOC called out Yoho’s use of abusive language about women and his faulty inclusion of his wife and daughters as a rationale about why he would never be abusive.
“But what I do have an issue with is using women–our wives and daughters–as shields and excuses for poor behavior,” the New York representative said. “Mr. Yoho mentioned that he had a wife and two daughters. I am two years younger than his youngest daughter.
“I am someone’s daughter, too. My father, thankfully, is not alive to see how Mr. Yoho treated his daughter,” AOC continued. “My mother got to see Mr. Yoho’s disrespect on the floor of this House towards me on television. And I am here because I have to show my parents that I am their daughter, and that they did not raise me to accept abuse from men.”