‘Why would I ever listen to a man who thinks he should have more say over my body than I do? NEXT,’ says Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Top Democrats are lashing out at House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., after he delivered an impassioned speech condemning anti-Israel protests on the Columbia University campus.
“Why should I listen to someone who thinks they should talk more about my body than I do? Next,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wrote in an X under a photo of Johnson in Columbia.
“Well, he’s trying to take away all their reproductive rights,” she responded to a report about students harassing Johnson.
Johnson and several New York House Republicans — Reps. Nicole Malliotakis, Anthony D’Esposito, and Mike Lawler – visited Jewish students on the Manhattan Ivy League campus Thursday, after days of demonstrations raised fears for their safety.
The speaker denounced a “mob” of pro-ceasefire activists who had set up camp on the Columbia campus, as well as the faculty and staff assisting them. Those protesters booed Johnson’s comments on Thursday, at one point shouting back, “Enjoy your freedom of speech.”
Read More: Supreme Court to hear arguments in Trump presidential immunity case
New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul accused Johnson of politicizing the demonstrations in comments to reporters in Albany, according to Politico.
“A speaker worthy of the title should try to heal people and not divide them, so I don’t think it adds to anything,” Hochul said. “It seems to me that there are still many responsibilities and crises to deal with in Washington… I would encourage the speaker to step back and maybe take up an immigration bill, a bill to close the borders, so we can deal with that. The real crisis in New York.”
Rep. Arrested in Columbia camp earlier this week. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., went a step further and said Johnson was putting people’s lives at risk.
“It’s no wonder he went to Columbia University and incited more anger and hatred and endangered the lives of young people at the camp at Columbia University,” she told MSNBC.
In response to the attacks, the speaker’s office told Fox News Digital, “Speaker Johnson spoke to students at Columbia University because Governor Hochul and other officials in New York have completely failed in their duty to protect Jewish students and combat the rise of anti-Semitism in their party. . . We wish this was not necessary.”
He appeared in Columbia as officials on both sides of the aisle condemned the demonstrations, which forced the university to move classes partially online. Similar protests have erupted at colleges across the country, including at Yale University, where a Jewish student said a flagpole hit him in the eye during an anti-Israel event.
“The college campus used to be a place for respectful debate, for differences of opinion, and the free marketplace of ideas. That’s not happening here,” Johnson told activists Thursday.
“You’re threatening and yelling at people you disagree with. You can’t censor and silence viewpoints you disagree with. That’s un-American. You don’t understand what it means to respect the First Amendment.”