Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was ridiculed online Wednesday for insisting that “RICO is not a crime” during a heated exchange with Tony Bobulinski, a witness at President Biden’s impeachment hearings.
Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told Bobulinski, a former business associate of Hunter Biden, in an attempt to reject Republican narratives about the Biden family during the second public impeachment hearing, saying, “The president… They were asked if they had witnessed a crime being committed.
“How much time do we have to look at it?” Bobulinski retorted, adding, “Corruption laws, RICO, conspiracy, [Foreign Agents Registration Act]”
“Sir, what exactly is the crime?” asked the progressive darling again.
“You asked me to answer that question. I answered the question. RICO, you’re clearly unfamiliar with corruption laws. FARA,” Bobulinski replied.
“Sorry, RICO isn’t a crime. It’s a category,” interjected Ocasio-Cortez, somewhat condescendingly.
RICO refers to the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which covers organized crime as well as dishonest business activities such as money laundering.
Former President Donald Trump and more than a dozen supporters were indicted last August in a massive extortion case in Fulton County for alleged fraud in Georgia’s 2020 election.
“No, that’s a category of crimes that can then be prosecuted,” Bobulinski countered.
“The funny thing is, there’s no one in this committee room, but we have over 18 lawyers who went to law school. I’ll leave it up to you to define law,” he added.
“Okay, I’ll make up for my time,” Ocasio-Cortez said indignantly, after a brief digression. “Obviously, what we’re seeing with her today is a continuation of the 15-month story of the Republican majority being lost in the desert.”
She then began a monologue denouncing the impeachment inquiry, stressing that the impeachment inquiry’s resolution “does not outline high crimes or misdemeanors.”
Netizens were quick to slam the progressive star for the heated exchange.
“And of course…AOC’s favorite network stood by her after she completely disgraced herself by claiming RICO was not a crime,” said media columnist Joe Concha.
“AOC breaks down during the Hunter Biden hearings. In fact, she’s so hurt that she claims RICO is not a crime. Well… let’s empty the prisons! Oh, just for the record. Just so you know, all the defendants in the Georgia case brought by Fani Willis are under RICO jurisdiction. Oops,” Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) wrote to X.
“Official @AOC is kind of special. RICO stands for Corrupt Influenced and Corrupt Organization. Yeah…no crime here lol” media personality Graham Allen reprimanded.
“Oh well. I hope @AOC can tell Fani Willis to drop the RICO charges against Trump,” BlazeTV host Sara Gonzalez said. made a joke.
Many House Republicans have called the impeachment inquiry a fact-finding mission, stopping short of explicitly accusing Joe Biden of committing a crime.
The White House and the president’s allies are taking advantage of House Republicans’ apparent indiscretion and are pushing ahead with an impeachment investigation.
“As I said on Friday, it’s clearly time to move on. This farce is over. The House should focus on real issues that actually matter to the American people,” the White House said. Oversight and Investigations Spokesman Ian Sams said. Posted in X before the hearing.
President Biden has called on Congress to end the impeachment inquiry and denied allegations of wrongdoing.
Republicans had invited scandal-plagued Hunter Biden to testify on Wednesday, but Biden declined. The eldest son testified behind closed doors at the committee on February 28th.
In addition to Bobulinski, Republicans also invited former Hunter Biden associates Jason Galanis and Devon Archer, but they were turned down.
Galanis is serving a sentence in connection with a $60 million scheme to defraud Native American tribes. He testified from prison.
Meanwhile, Democrats have invited Lev Parnas, a former colleague of former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who initially ran a campaign to dig up dirt for Biden in Ukraine, but later described it as a “bastard chase.” Rejected.
