AOC accuses Kayleigh McEnany of racism as press secretary calls Democrat 'a Joe Biden adviser' and she hits back: I'm a congresswoman, not the help

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez accused White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany of racism for referring to her as a 'Biden adviser' during Monday's press briefing.  

'@PressSec wouldn’t be the first person to mistake a women of color for having a lower position or title than she does, but Kayleigh - in case you haven’t picked up a newspaper in two years, I’m a Congresswoman,' AOC tweeted.  

Ocasio-Cortez lashed out because she had seen a tweet from Politico's Jake Sherman that said McEnany had called the New York Democrat from the podium, 'Biden adviser Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.' In reality, McEnany had referred to AOC as a congresswoman in the sentence before.

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez lashed out at White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany for referring to her as a 'Biden adviser' during Monday's briefing 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitter to explain how, historically, women of color have been referred to as 'having a lower position or title' 

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The problem with AOC's complaint was that it wasn't true: Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany referred to 'congresswoman' and then brought up Rep. Rashida Tlaib and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, criticizing both of them for wanting to defund the police  

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Having not heard the 'congresswomen' intro, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Kayleigh McEnany calling her a 'Biden adviser' was 'steeped in a long, hurtful, & horrendous history of stripping women of color of titles and diminshing them to "the help"' 

McEnany was responding to a question about what President Trump thought of the 'Defund the Police' movement, a broad concept being pitched by the political left to move resources to communities and out of traditional policing. 

'The president is appalled by the Defund the Police movement,' McEnany replied. 'That fact that you have sitting congresswoman wanting to defund the police - notably Rashida Tlaib; notably Biden adviser AOC, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez; former Clinton and Eric Holder spokesperson spokesperson Brian Fallon wanting to defund our police across thie country - it is extraordinary.' 

McEnany had used the plural 'congresswoman' to describe both Tlaib and Ocasio-Cortez. 

White House Communications Director Alyssa Farah jumped in to point out that press secretary Kayleigh McEnany's full quote described both Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Rashida Tlaib as 'SITTING CONGRESSWOMEN' 

Alyssa Farah tweeted Monday afternoon that White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany 'literally called' Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 'a congresswoman' 

Still, Ocasio-Cortez pointed out that McEnany's comment 'is steeped in a long, hurtful, & horrendous history of stripping women of color of titles and diminishing them to "the help."' 

'Perhaps she isn't aware that what she did was mired in racist history,' Ocasio-Cortez said. 'If that is the case, I look forward to her apology tomorrow,' the congresswoman added. 

Upon seeing Ocasio-Cortez's tweets, White House Communications Director Alyssa Farah jumped in and shared the 'verbatim quote' said by McEnany, pointing out she called Ocasio-Cortez and Tlaib 'SITTING CONGRESSWOMEN' in capital letters. 

'She literally called you Congresswoman, @AOC,' Farah said.