Dems Get in Shouting and (Alleged) Shoving Match

A pair of House Democrats had a less-than-decorous exchange on the floor yesterday, the Hill reports. With the chamber clearing out after a series of votes, Appropriations chair David Obey and Maxine Waters began screaming at each other over an earmark for a school bearing Waters' name. “You’re out of line!” Waters cried. “You’re out of line!” countered Obey, who began to walk away before turning back and shouting, “I’m not going to approve that earmark!”

Soon after, Waters was heard telling members of the Congressional Black Caucus: “He touched me first!” The argument began over funding Waters sought for the Los Angeles school, which Obey said violated policies against “monuments to me.” Things escalated, according to a Waters aide, when Obey pushed her. Other witnesses say Waters shoved first. (More Maxine Waters stories.)