Politics- GOP Rep.
Lauren Boebert has so far not responded to criticism of her comments made about Transportation Sec.Pete Buttigieg . - Boebert at an event this month criticized Buttigieg for taking parental leave and said he was trying to "chest feed" them.
GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert has so far not responded publicly to criticism over comments she made at an event this month about Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg trying to "chest feed" and about Rep.
"Meanwhile, you have Secretary of Transportation, good ol' Mayor Pete. He wasn't even put in charge of the supply chain crisis. Someone else was tapped for that because Mayor Pete is still at home trying to figure out how to chest feed," Boebert said, to laughs from the crowd.
"Somebody 'oughta tell him so he can get back to work," she added.
Video of the event circulated on social media after it was posted to Twitter on Thursday, though it was recorded at a November 20 event, where it was shared to Facebook the same day, according to CNN. Her comments prompted negative responses on social media, though she has yet to respond to the criticism.
—Michael Holmes (@holmescnn) November 26, 2021
A representative for Boebert did not immediately return Insider's request for comment Sunday.
Buttigieg and his husband, Chasten, in September announced that they had adopted twins, Penelope Rose and Joseph August. The transportation secretary announced he had taken parental leave from his position in the Biden administration, a decision that prompted blowback from conservatives.
Boebert earlier in November similarly criticized Buttigieg and made claims relating to the transportation secretary attempting to "chest feed" his children.
"The guy was gone, the guy was not working. Because why? He was trying to figure out how to chest feed," she said, according to a report from HuffPost. Fox
Boebert, a Republican who represents Colorado, already issued one apology for comments she made at the same event, where she implied that Rep. Ilhan Omar, who is Muslim, was a terrorist.
As Insider's Bryan Metzger reported, Boebert said she encountered Omar in an elevator, causing a Capitol Police officer to run toward her with "fret all over his face."
"Well, she doesn't have a backpack. We should be fine," Boebert said she told the officer. Boebert also said she during the interaction referred to Omar as a member of the "Jihad Squad," referencing the group of progressive lawmakers, who are all people of color.
Omar later said that Boebert had made the entire story up, according to NBC Washington.
Her comments about Omar sparked widespread backlash, which led her to apologize in a tweet Friday.
"I apologize to anyone in the Muslim community I offended with my comment about Rep. Omar," Boebert said in a tweet. "I have reached out to her office to speak with her directly. There are plenty of policy differences to focus on without this unnecessary distraction."
After Boebert issued her statement on Twitter, Omar in a tweet called on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to take action against her.
"Saying I am a suicide bomber is no laughing matter. @GOPLeader and @SpeakerPelosi need to take appropriate action, normalizing this bigotry not only endangers my life but the lives of all Muslims," Omar said. "Anti-Muslim bigotry has no place in Congress."
In response to her comments about Omar, Democratic leadership in the House said in a statement her "language and behavior are far beneath the standard of integrity, dignity and decency with which the Constitution and our constituents require that we act in the House."