AOC Slams Josh Hawley for 'Crying Over a Book Deal' After He 'Fueled a Riot'

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) called for Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) to be expelled from Congress while blasting him for "crying over a book deal" after his publisher cancelled the release of his book following riots at the U.S. Capitol.

Hawley objected to Pennsylvania's Electoral College votes for President-elect Joe Biden when Congress met to certify his victory over President Donald Trump on Wednesday. A violent mob of Trump supporters, fueled by false claims that the election had been "stolen," stormed the building not long after the joint session began.

Publisher Simon & Schuster canceled Hawley's book deal the next day, prompting him to threaten legal action, which in turn prompted a sharp rebuke from Ocasio-Cortez.

"You fist-pumped insurrectionists and baselessly attacked our elections," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted in response to Hawley threatening to sue the publisher. "Your actions fueled a riot and you fundraised in the chaos. Five people are dead. Even your GOP colleagues have distanced from your acts. Yet here you are crying over a book deal. You should be expelled."

Ocasio-Cortez had tweeted earlier that Hawley and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), the only senators to launch complaints during the certification process, should both resign or be expelled by the Senate. She said that Cruz "must accept responsibility for how your craven, self-serving actions contributed to the deaths of four people yesterday," while also accusing him of using the violence for fundraising purposes.

Simon and Schuster announced Thursday that they would no longer be publishing Hawley's book The Tyranny of Big Tech because they "cannot support Senator Hawley after his role in what became a dangerous threat to our democracy and freedom." Prior to the cancellation, the book had been set to be released in June.

Hawley responded to the news by releasing what he called "a statement to the woke mob" at the publishing house, claiming that the decision was an assault on his First Amendment rights and had been made because he was trying to protect "voter integrity" with his objection to Biden's win.

"This could not be more Orwellian," Hawley wrote in the statement, which was posted to Twitter. "Simon & Schuster is canceling my contract because I was representing my constituents, leading a debate on the Senate floor on voter integrity, which they have now decided to redefine as sedition. Let me be clear, this is not just a contract dispute. It's a direct assault on the First Amendment. Only approved speech can now be published. This is the Left looking to cancel everyone they don't approve of. I will fight this cancel culture with everything I have. We'll see you in court."

The Senate overwhelmingly rejected the evidence-free claims of massive voter fraud that had been heavily promoted by Trump before finalizing Biden's win, voting 92-7 against the objection from Hawley and 93-6 against the Cruz objection.

Newsweek reached out to Hawley's office for comment.