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Last Monday, July 20th, after giving a speech on the recent crime spike in her district, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was ready to wrap up the day and head home. On her way down the Capitol steps, the congresswoman was stopped by Florida Representative Ted Yoho. In a fit of rage—overheard by a reporter from The Hill— Yoho called Ocasio-Cortez "disgusting", "out of her mind" using tons of foul language along with the insult b*tch. 

 Ocasio-Cortez responded to the attack with a truly iconic tweet:

I never spoke to Rep. Yoho before he decided to accost me on the steps of the nation’s Capitol yesterday.

Believe it or not, I usually get along fine w/ my GOP colleagues. We know how to check our legislative sparring at the committee door.

But hey, “b*tches” get stuff done. 🤷🏽‍♀️ https://t.co/WlG3xccwR7

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 21, 2020

*BRB, gonna go put this in my Instagram bio.*

At first, Yoho denied that the altercation took such a personal turn. His spokesperson, Brian Kaveny, told HuffPost that Yoho had "a brief member to member conversation with the congresswoman" and "made a brief comment to himself as he walked away, summarizing what he believes her polices to be: bullsh*it." 

On Wednesday Yoho took to the floor of the House to make a half-hearted apology, saying "The offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleagues, and if they were construed that way, I apologize for their misunderstanding." The congressmen added, "Having been married for 45 years with two daughters, I’m very cognizant of my language." 

Rep. Yoho apologizes for "abrupt manner of the conversation I had" with Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, but adds "the offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleagues and if they were construed that way, I apologize for their misunderstanding." pic.twitter.com/m3NRkFUbsh

— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) July 22, 2020

While it would be totally understandable for AOC to ignore Yoho's inappropriate attacks and continuing to make history as the youngest congresswoman ever, we're grateful to the New York Rep. for standing up for women everywhere who have been labeled "bossy," "pushy" or even "b*tchy" for asserting themselves in the workplace. In a soon-to-be historic speech, Ocasio-Cortez tackled the deeply rooted misogyny that is still present in Washington D.C. saying: "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.” You can watch Ocasio Cortez's full-inspiring statement here:

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

by Elise G. Esquibel | 7/28/2020