“Raise her butt”
US Senator wants to fight with trade unionists
November 14, 2023, 10:13 p.m
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US Senator Markwayne Mullin and union boss Sean O’Brien are not on good terms. When both attend a hearing in the Senate, the situation escalates. The Republican with an MMA past challenges his opponent to a duel.
Republican US Senator Markwayne Mullin urged a key union boss to fight during a hearing. The incident occurred during a meeting of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, at which Teamster Transportation Employees Union President Sean O’Brien was called as a witness.
When given the opportunity to ask O’Brien questions, Mullin referred to an earlier hearing in March when the two had a heated exchange over Mullin’s background as a businessman and O’Brien’s salary as a union boss. Then the senator from Oklahoma talked about Twitter posts that O’Brien is said to have published after the last meeting. Mullin read aloud one of the posts that called him a “greedy CEO,” a “clown” and a “fraud.”
“You know where to find me. Any time, any place, cowboy,” Mullin said, pointing to the floor between the podium and the witness table. “If you want to open your mouth, we can be two adults in agreement. We can end it here.” Then he added: “Should we do it now? Then get your ass up!” O’Brien replied, “Get your ass up!” Mullin then jumped up from his seat.
The chairman of the committee, Bernie Sanders, immediately called Mullin to reason. The prominent Democrat senator from Vermont ordered Mullin to sit down and warned, “You are a United States senator.” Sanders added: “God knows the American people have enough contempt for Congress. Let’s not make it worse.”
The Senate website says Mullins is a “former undefeated mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter” with a record of five wins and zero losses. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2016.