Texas representative Chip Roy demanded an apology from New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday for a tweet in which Ocasio-Cortez claimed that Texas senator Ted Cruz almost “murdered” her during the January riot in the US Capitol building.
Cruz was one of several Republicans who challenged President Joe Biden’s victory at the Electoral College during confirmation by Congress in January. Supporters of former President Donald Trump entered the Capitol building during the count, forcing some lawmakers to take shelter there. Six deaths were attributed to the turmoil.
Ocasio-Cortez made the comment to Cruz after tweeting his agreement with her about the need to “know more” about blocking some shares by the Robinhood trading app.
“I am happy to work with Republicans on this issue where there is common ground, but you almost killed me three weeks ago, so you can stay out,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted in response to Cruz on Thursday. “Happy to work with almost any other GOP that isn’t trying to kill me. In the meantime, if you want to help, you can step down.”
In a letter on Thursday to Mayor Nancy Pelosi, Roy called Ocasio-Cortez’s allegations “rude”.
“It is completely unacceptable behavior for a member of Congress to make this kind of blatant accusation against another member of the House or Senate for simply engaging in speeches and debates about voters while they interpret the Constitution. I ask that you immediately invite her to apologize and remove your comments, “wrote Roy.
“If Representative Ocasio-Cortez does not apologize immediately,” continued Roy, “we will be forced to find alternative means to condemn this unfortunate statement.”
Newsweek contacted Pelosi’s office for comment.
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Roy had promised to join some Republican colleagues to challenge Biden’s victory. After the riot, Roy reconsidered his position. In comments to Congress when the electoral vote count met again, Roy highlighted Trump’s repeated baseless allegations about electoral fraud as a factor in the riot.
“The president should never have convinced certain Americans to believe something that simply cannot be,” said Roy. Roy did not object to Biden’s certification.
Ocasio-Cortez claimed that Cruz had some responsibility for creating the environment that triggered the riot, supporting Trump’s allegations of electoral fraud. In a tweet on Thursday, Ocasio-Cortez wrote that Cruz should be replaced.
“We need responsibility,” tweeted Ocasio-Cortez, “and that includes a new Texas senator.”
Cruz tried to distance himself from Trump’s rhetoric in a January interview with KTRK, claiming that he had “disagreed with the president’s language and rhetoric for the past four years”.
In January, some Democratic senators asked the Senate Ethics Committee to open an investigation into Cruz and Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri, who also expressed objections to Biden’s confirmation. The letter claimed that Cruz and Hawley’s objections “lent legitimacy” to the cause of Capitol rioters and “made future violence more likely”.