Rep. Malliotakis: AOC, Democrats think getting arrested makes them popular
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., responds to Squad members' fake handcuffs incident while protesting SCOTUS over Roe v. Wade.
The images of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., seemingly pretending to be handcuffed on Tuesday as they were escorted away from the Supreme Court by police drew amusement and ridicule on the right.
Along with left-wing "Squad" members like Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., and several other House Democrats, Ocasio-Cortez and Omar joined an abortion rights protest outside the Supreme Court that blocked traffic, leading to Capitol Police taking her away.
Video caught Ocasio-Cortez walking away with a policeman holding her and another protester's arms, smirking, with her hands behind her back in the typical handcuffs pose, yet she wasn't cuffed. At one point, she raised a fist to the crowd in solidarity, confirming she wasn't being constrained. Omar also could be seen in a video walking away from the protest with her hands behind her back in handcuffs pose, despite not wearing them.
Ocasio-Cortez, a lightning rod of criticism on the right, predictably lit up Twitter when the image went viral Tuesday afternoon, as critics mocked her for seemingly playing up the drama of her encounter with law enforcement.
REPS. OMAR, ADAMS AMONG 16 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS ARRESTED DURING ABORTION PROTEST NEAR SUPREME COURT
"Her pretending to be handcuffed is just spectacular," National Review's Charles C. W. Cooke tweeted.
"Is…is she pretending to be handcuffed?" the National Journalism Center's Becket Adams reacted.
"This is too much," GOP flack Matt Whitlock wrote.
"So @AOC is a criminal insurrectionist who should be banned from federal office?" Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton joked.
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The Washington Post's Dave Weigel, fresh off some social media drama of his own last month, couldn't resist getting in on the ribbing, too.
"Both AOC and Omar raise their fists in this clip. How stretchy are these handcuffs?" he asked in a now-deleted tweet, responding to a credulous Minneapolis TV reporter who said that staff had confirmed video of Omar "in handcuffs." A smiling Omar also raised a fist near the end of the video, seemingly proving she too wasn't wearing "bracelets."
Fox News Digital reached out to Ocasio-Cortez's office for comment.
The arrests didn't appear to be of particular stress to Ocasio-Cortez, Omar and their fellow street protesters.
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CNN's Edward-Isaac Dovere reported some arrested lawmakers were "in lieu of mugshots… being asked to pose with an officer and their ID for a photo. Many are treating these like a fun celebration, selfies with friendly officers."
Omar tweeted out the video of her walking in pretend handcuffs and wrote, "Today I was arrested while participating in a civil disobedience action with my fellow Members of Congress outside the Supreme Court. I will continue to do everything in my power to raise the alarm about the assault on our reproductive rights!"
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