Drinking was allegedly taking place in a committee room where a hearing devolved into insults of “fake eyelashes” and “bleach blonde bad-built butch body” being slung across the chamber by Republican and Democrat lawmakers on Thursday.
Both Republicans and Democrats told Politico that some members had been drinking that evening but no names were made public.
At a hearing to decide if US attorney general Merrick Garland could be held in contempt of Congress, Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene launched the first salvo about Democrat Jasmine Crockett’s “fake eyelashes”.
“I’d like to know if any Democrats on the committee are employing Judge [Juan] Merchan’s daughter?” Ms Greene said on Thursday evening, referring to the judge who is overseeing Donald Trump’s hush money trial. Mr Trump and other Republicans have attacked Judge Merchan as too partisan, and highlighted that his daughter has worked for Democrats.
“Please tell me what that has to do with Merrick Garland?” Ms Crockett, a freshman member of the Oversight Committee, asked.
“I think your fake eyelashes are messing up what you’re reading,” Ms Greene said.
The hearing then erupted with Chairman James Comer unable to contain proceedings for around an hour.
Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rebuked Ms Greene’s “disgusting” and “unacceptable” remarks about Ms Crockett.
“How dare you attack the physical appearance of another person?” Ms Ocasio-Cortez said.
The Republican taunted her, asking whether her feelings had been hurt.
“Oh girl, oh baby girl, don’t even play,” Ms Ocasio-Cortez retorted, leading to her counterpart mockingly adding: “Oh really, baby girl?”
Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the committee, also admonished her. “That’s beneath even you Ms Greene,” he said.
The back-and-fourth continued, with Ms Greene agreeing to strike her words from the record. However, she did not agree to apologise to Ms Crockett, which caused further anger in the Democratic camp.
When asked, Ms Ocasio-Cortez refused to enter a debate with Ms Greene, which resulted in the Republican’s final damning remark: “Yeah, you don’t have enough intelligence.”
Mr Comer said that Ms Greene’s insult ultimately did not violate House rules, leaving Ms Crockett scratching her head at the ruling.
“If someone on this committee then starts talking about somebody’s bleach blond, bad-built butch body, that would not be engaging in personalities, correct?” she asked the chairman.
Her question was met with confusion from Mr Comer. “Uh, what now?” he asked.
That prompted Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna to request that Ms Crockett’s words be stricken from the record, inviting a vocal response from Democrats.
“I’m trying to get clarification,” Ms Crockett said. “Don’t tell me to calm down, because y’all talk noise and then you can’t take it, because if I come and talk s*** about her, y’all gonna have a problem.”
Later, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania criticised the hearing, comparing it to The Jerry Springer Show. But that earned criticism from Ms Ocasio-Cortez.
“I understand you likely would not have stood up for your colleague and seem to be confused about racism and misogyny being a “both sides” issue,” she posted on X. “But I stand up to bullies, instead of becoming one. And to the women of Pennsylvania: I’d stand up for you too. Enjoy your Friday.”
Representative Veronica Escobar of Texas also admonished Mr Fetterman.
“Women of color in congress are frequently targeted by misogynistic, xenophobic, ignorant people. I’ve lived it,” she said. “One of the shameless extremists we work with insulted @JasmineForUS, and @AOC used parliamentary procedure to demand a standard of decorum. There is no “both sides.”
The hearing was the latest chapter in House Republicans’ failed attempts to impeach Mr Biden since they voted to begin an impeachment inquiry in December.
House Speaker Mike Johnson admonished members after the hearing.
“When we disagree — even vehemently — we have got to treat one another with dignity and respect,” he said. “I think it’s an important principle.”
Last week, Ms Greene led a failed effort to remove Mr Johnson, with an overwhelming number of Democrats joining almost all Republicans to save him.
