A heated confrontation between Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) and Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) erupted during a House hearing on Tuesday, escalating to the point where Mace challenged Crockett to “take it outside.” The verbal altercation unfolded during a discussion on civil rights and transgender issues.
The confrontation began when Crockett, in advocating for the re-establishment of a subcommittee on civil rights, criticized Mace’s rhetoric on transgender issues. Crockett accused Mace of using inflammatory language to target the transgender community, specifically calling out her focus on "trans" issues in an attempt to rally conservative voters.
“I can see that somebody’s campaign coffers really are struggling right now,” Crockett said. “So [Mace] is gonna keep saying ‘trans, trans, trans, trans’ so that people will feel threatened, and child, listen —”
At this point, Mace sharply interrupted: “I am no child, do not call me a child.”
The exchange escalated quickly when Mace, visibly agitated, challenged Crockett with a comment that would further fuel the controversy: “If you want to take it outside, we can do that.”
The remark, widely interpreted as a threat, was met with immediate pushback.
The situation reached a boiling point, prompting committee chair Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) to rule that Mace’s comment did not constitute a threat of violence. In his defense, Comer suggested that Mace’s comment could have simply been an invitation to discuss matters away from the committee room, perhaps “to have a cup of coffee or perhaps a beer,” though the optics of the exchange seemed to suggest otherwise.
In the aftermath, both lawmakers took to social media to address the incident. Mace posted about the encounter on X, acknowledging that she had "gone off" on Crockett, but insisted her challenge to take the conversation outside was not meant to provoke a physical altercation.
“Let me be clear: I wanted to take the conversation off the floor to have a more constructive conversation, not to fight. At no point was there any intention of causing harm to anyone,” Mace clarified in a post.
Crockett, however, framed the exchange differently. She tweeted that she had been threatened and called Mace an "attention-seeking loser."
Crockett sarcastically remarked, “Last I checked, threatening members in a committee room doesn’t exactly reduce the cost of eggs,” highlighting her frustration with the growing tension in Congress and the perceived focus on divisive rhetoric over substantive policy issues.
The clash between Mace and Crockett adds to a growing list of tense and sometimes combative moments in the House Oversight Committee. The same room had witnessed another explosive exchange last year, when Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) insulted Crockett’s appearance during a May hearing. Greene mocked Crockett’s eyelashes in response to a question, leading to a sharp back-and-forth that further intensified partisan divisions within the committee.
In that incident, Crockett responded to Comer’s decision not to reprimand Greene by asking, “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?” Crockett’s remark underscored her frustration with the lack of accountability for personal attacks and insults in the committee.
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