Congressman Paul Gosar remains in hot water after tweeting an anime video that depicted the brutal slaying of a monster which bore the likeness of a fellow member of Congress, Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
In the same video, Mr Gosar was seen threatening another beast bearing the face of President Joe Biden with a sword.
The Arizona Republican has insisted the videos were jokes aimed at reaching a younger audience, and that he did not mean to glorify or threaten violence against his political opponents. But his statements haven’t satisfied Democrats including Speaker Nancy Pelosi, not to mention Ms Ocasio-Cortez herself.
On Tuesday, Ms Pelosi made it clear that she would seek consequences as the House leader against Mr Gosar for his conduct, including his potential removal from the House Oversight Committee. Ms Ocasio-Cortez is a member of the same panel.
“[H]e made threats, suggestions about harming a member of Congress,” said Ms Pelosi to reporters. “That is an insult...not only an endangerment of that member of Congress, but an insult to the institution of the House of Representatives. We cannot have members joking about murdering each other as well as threatening the president of the United States.”
