Florida Republican Rep. Ted Yoho expressed some contrition on the floor of the House for “the abrupt manner” of an outburst he unleashed on New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D) on Tuesday.
The Hill reported that Yoho said “f**king bitch” in reference to Ocasio-Cortez after the confrontation.
Yoho initially denied the allegations and claimed he’d only told the New York representative she was “bullshit” while accosting her over claims she made linking economic insecurity to a rise in crime in New York City.
In his statement Wednesday, Yoho invoked his wife and daughters to make the all-too-familiar claim that having women in his family makes him conscious of the ways women are belittled.
“Having been married for 45 years with two daughters, I’m very cognizant of my language,” Yoho claimed.
Yoho said his offensive words were not spoken directly to the congresswoman.
“The offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleagues,” Yoho claimed. “And if they were construed that way, I apologize for their misunderstanding,” he added.
While offering some contrition, Yoho said he would not apologize for his “passion, loving my God, my family or my country.”
CORRECTION: A previous version of this article misstated that Ocasio-Cortez confirmed that Yoho called her a “fucking bitch.” That comment was overheard and reported by The Hill, and Ocasio-Cortez told NBC News that she did not hear Yoho say that.