Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) ripped into Kellyanne Conway on Tuesday after the White House counselor mocked the tension between freshmen Democrats and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
Pelosi has been sparring with Pressley and fellow Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (Mich.) and Ilhan Omar (Minn.), who all recently voted against an immigration bill that gives billions to Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two agencies under fire for the horrific conditions at migrant detention centers.
Earlier on Tuesday, Conway called the tension between Pelosi and the four other high-profile female congresswomen a “major meow moment” and a “huge catfight,” two sexist phrases used to characterize arguments between women.
“[O]h hi Distraction Becky. Remember that time your boss tore babies from their mothers’ arms and threw them in cages?” Pressley tweeted at Conway, referring to the Trump administration’s zero-tolerance immigration policy.
“Yeah take a seat and keep my name out of your lying mouth.”
Conway’s tweet linked to a New York Times interview between columnist Maureen Dowd and Pelosi. In that interview, Pelosi slammed the four women of color, saying “All these people have their public whatever and their Twitter world. But they didn’t have any following. They’re four people and that’s how many votes they got.”
Ninety-five House Democrats voted against the bill, which increased funding to deal with conditions at the border but lacked humanitarian guarantees for detained migrants, especially children. Pelosi chose not to amend the bill sent over from the Senate.
In the Times interview, Pelosi defended herself against criticism ― including in the HuffPost story “What The Hell Is Nancy Pelosi Doing?” ― that she frequently caves to Republicans on legislative decisions, such as the Senate version of the immigration bill.
Ocasio-Cortez hit back at Pelosi on Twitter, saying the “public whatever is called the public sentiment.” Tlaib told Politico that it’s “very disappointing” that Pelosi “would ever try to diminish our voices in so many ways.” Omar tweeted, “Sorry not sorry.”