Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) is facing harsh criticism on social media after an audio recording leaked of her berating her staff in a profanity-laced tirade.
Jackson Lee has developed a reputation as one of the “meanest” people in Congress, according to Fox News. The Democrat congresswoman has been serving in her position since 1995, and is currently running for mayor of Houston, Texas.
The recording of her latest tirade was obtained by Texas news outlet Current Revolt and published on Saturday.
In the recording, which is less than two minutes long, Jackson Lee can be heard calling her staffers “fat a— stupid idiots” and “big a— children f—king idiots” — while also telling them that they “serve no g— d— purpose.”
From the context of the tape, it appears that the Democrat congresswoman was blowing up at her staff over an event that apparently should have been added to her schedule.
“Uh, you took a piece of paper from that woman, uh, regarding, uh, something that was owned by Ducantell. Where is it? What, what date was it?” Jackson Lee began.
“Oh, Jerome took it upstairs,” a staffer responded. “I’ll have to call to pick it up when I switched out the papers. I’ll call him.”
“I don’t want you to do a g—d— thing,” Jackson Lee yelled. “I want you to have a f—king brain. I want you to have read it. I want you to say, ‘Congresswoman, with such and such date.’ That’s what I want. That’s the kind of staff that I want to have… And nobody knows a g—d— thing in my office. Okay? Nothing. I gave it to you. Your job was to get it on the calendar, imprint it in your brain, or send me the information back saying, ‘Congresswoman, I made sure that the Ovide Ducantell event that you gave me, uh, for a so-and-so date at seven is on the f—king calendar.’”
“So when I called Jerome, he only sitting up there like a fat a— stupid idiot talking about, uh, what the f—k? He doesn’t know,” she continued. “Okay? Both of y’all are f—kups [inaudible]. It’s the worst s—t that I could have ever had put together. Two godd—mn big a— children f—king idiots serve no goddamn purpose. Ain’t managing nobody. Nobody’s respecting them. Nobody gives a s—t about what you’re doing, and you ain’t doing s—t.”
Leaked audio obtained by @CurrentRevolt shows Democrat Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee berating a staffer: "F**king idiots serve no goddamn purpose … Nobody gives a shit about what you're doing and you ain't doing shit!"
(WARNING: Explicit language) pic.twitter.com/Lzl4AmKhkS
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 21, 2023
Jackson Lee has faced backlash on social media over her tirade — and critics are also condemning the mainstream media for refusing to report on the matter.
“Why is the mainstream media ignoring the audio of Sheila Jackson Lee berating her staff?” RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel asked in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “She’s running to be the mayor of the fourth largest city in the country. She’d oversee more staff than she ever has in Congress. But the media gives her a pass because she’s a Democrat.”
Why is the mainstream media ignoring the audio of Sheila Jackson Lee berating her staff?
She’s running to be the mayor of the fourth largest city in the country. She’d oversee more staff than she ever has in Congress. But the media gives her a pass because she’s a Democrat.
— Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) October 23, 2023
“Many people swear but berating, insulting & bullying your staff is never ok,” citizen journalist Kristi L. Talmadge wrote. “If somebody ever screamed at me like this, I’d lose my mind on them, grab my stuff & walk right out the door…Should the House Ethics Committee address Rep Sheila Jackson Lee’s behavior here?”
Many people swear but berating, insulting & bullying your staff is never ok.
If somebody ever screamed at me like this, I'd lose my mind on them, grab my stuff & walk right out the door.
Should the House Ethics Committee address Rep Sheila Jackson Lee's behavior here? https://t.co/Vct7YHFgMC
— Kristi L. Talmadge (@KristiTalmadge) October 22, 2023
Jackson Lee has thus far refused to address the leaked audio.
