‘Did I Strike a Nerve!?’ Val Demings and Jim Jordan Have Explosive Shouting Match Over Police at House Hearing

Representatives Val Demings (D-FL) and Jim Jordan (R-OH) got into it today, and Jerry Nadler (D-NY) entered the fray to make it a three-way melee during a House hearing over the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act.

The House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Tuesday to discuss the bill, which was proposed to address the recent increase in hate crimes against Asian Americans. As Jordan called for an amendment to the bill, he went on a tangent attacking Democrats for their rhetoric about the police as the country observes civil unrest between the Derek Chauvin murder trial and the fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright.

Demings, who used to be a police officer, was the next up to speak, and she began by decrying the “completely irrelevant” amendment Jordan was pushing.

“It’s interesting to see my colleagues on the other side of the aisle support the police when it is politically convenient to do so,” Demings said. As she continued to say law enforcement officers “deserve better” than that, Jordan moved to interject, which prompted her to exclaim “I have the floor, Mr. Jordan!”

“Did I strike a nerve!?” Demings shouted. “Law enforcement officers deserve better than to be utilized as pawns! And you and your colleagues should be ashamed of yourselves!”

Nadler intervened to tell the Demings and Jordan not to interrupt each other, but they continued to fight over her insinuations about his motives.

“You are using them as pawns because it serves your ridiculous political purpose!” She said.

The hearing continued to descend into chaos despite Nadler’s attempts to restore calm, and Jordan eventually raised a point of order to object to Demings’ “lecture” on his motives.

“That is not a point of order,” Nadler responded, which caused Jordan to protest “yes it is!” Demings was eventually given her time back, and she blasted Republicans for being “silent” about the lies that caused police officers to come under attack during the storming of the U.S. Capitol.

The eruption comes less than a week after Jordan’s fight with Congressman James Clyburn (D-SC), Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), and Dr. Anthony Fauci. That blow-up occurred as Jordan demanded Fauci pinpoint a specific point when he thinks the country will be able to roll back coronavirus-related safety restrictions.

Watch above, via House Committee on the Judiciary.