Far-left Democrats Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) were mocked Tuesday afternoon for pretending to be handcuffed after their arrests for obstructing traffic during a pro-abortion protest at the Supreme Court.
Capitol police reported making 35 arrests for “crowding, obstructing or incommoding.” The statement indicated that 17 members of Congress were among those arrested.
The lawmakers arrested included Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Rep. Madeline Dean (D-PA), Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA), Assistant Speaker of the House Katherine Clark (D-MA), Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Rep. Andy Levin (D-MI), Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC), Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ). Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX), and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL).
The arrests created ripples across social media, but the responses to Ocasio-Cortez and Omar “pretending” to be handcuffed as they were led away from the scene created waves of social mocking for the progressive lawmakers.
Late Night Comedian Steven Crowder’s tweet called AOC out.
.@AOC, we can all see you’re not really in cuffs, dummy. pic.twitter.com/5ULyyc09Qm
— Steven Crowder (@scrowder) July 19, 2022
Cameron Cawthorne, Fox News Political Editor, pointed out Omar in a tweet, also pretending to be handcuffed as she exited the area.
Check out the last split second of this clip of Omar after pretending she has handcuffs on.pic.twitter.com/szISvUmY5C
— Cameron Cawthorne (@Cam_Cawthorne) July 19, 2022
Olivia Hajicek of The Federalist made the candid observation that AOC’s lifted fist pump to pro-abortion supporters bore a stark resemblance to one that got Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri blasted by former supporters and accused of being a Nazi.
Hajicek pointed out how Hawley had lifted his fist in a show of solidarity to a “still-peace crowd of protesters” outside the Capitol on Jan. 6. Francis Chung, a photographer for E&E News, captured the senator’s action.
Multiple critics pounced on Hawley, deeming him an Insurrectionist, including then-President-Elect Joe Biden, comparing Hawley to Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi party and Reich Minister of Propaganda under Adolf Hitler during WWII.
AOC and her progressive comrade’s spectacle are still treading on social media.
Here are a few more noteworthy responses to their actions.
Larry Sanger, co-founder of Wikipedia: “Gee, as a lawmaker and representative of law in this country, I would have expected you to understand that you are entirely free to protest in support of abortion rights—as long as you aren’t blocking traffic while doing so. But go ahead, be proud of your childish arrest.”
Caleb Hull, digital strategist: “The funniest part about this video of AOC being escorted out by Capitol Police is her pretending to be in handcuffs. She is a professional victim.”
Brit Hume, Fox News: “Note the handcuff pose, abandoned only to raise her fist in the air. The queen of gestures.”
