Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) lit into Republican witnesses at a House Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, erupting in frustration after struggling to get three GOP-invited witnesses to acknowledge that the Proud Boys and Neo-Nazis are white supremacist organizations.
The fireworks came during a hearing Republicans titled "The Southern Poverty Law Center: Manufacturing Hate," a session convened by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) in the wake of a federal indictment against the civil rights organization.
Crockett opened her questioning by asking the full panel point-blank whether the Proud Boys were a white supremacist organization. Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, said he wasn't "on their mailing list." Tyler O'Neil of The Daily Signal flatly said no. Dr. Carol Swain said she hadn't "read a description" of how they define themselves.
Crockett was visibly exasperated.
"Oh, it just seemed like you were saying because you haven't received their mail, you've only received the mail of white supremacists," she shot at Perkins.
She moved on to Neo-Nazis, but that didn't go any smoother. Perkins pivoted to antisemitism and began invoking Rep. Jerry Nadler before Crockett cut him off — "Reclaiming my time!" — until he finally conceded the point.
"Thank God! Jesus Christ! I didn't think we were gonna get there!" she exclaimed.
Then she let loose.
"Let me be clear: Proud Boys are white supremacists! Neo-Nazis are too! And this president, who loves to coddle white supremacists, has decided that they should be given checks," Crockett said, referencing Trump's pardons of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy for their roles in Jan. 6.
"How dare this majority sit here and try to lecture this organization about money!" Crockett continued, turning the hearing's premise on its head. "They either entered pleas of guilty or they were found guilty. And this president, on day one, his priority was not around racism. It was around doing things like letting them go and now putting money in their pockets."
Crockett then rattled off names of victims — Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, the nine worshippers murdered at Mother Emanuel AME Church, the 23 killed at an El Paso Walmart in 2019, and the 10 killed at a Buffalo grocery store in 2022 — and blamed Republican rhetoric directly.
"All of these were murdered by white supremacists who were empowered by the Republican Party's racist rhetoric and policies!" she said.
She closed by going after Republican efforts to restrict voting and limit history education in schools. "Some of y'all need to read your history books — the very same ones that Republicans have decided people should not hear about!"
When her time expired, Jordan interjected: "Well, you can't yield — you've run out of time."
