Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert on Monday claimed Ilhan Omar hung up on her during a telephone call to ease tensions after she joked about the Democratic lawmaker being a suicide bomber, and then went on to accuse her rival of being anti-American and a terrorist sympathizer.
If the phone call was meant to smooth over an ugly row, the Colorado Republican's video message will only enflame matters.
According to Boebert's account, the two demanded apologies of each other.
'I told Ilhan Omar that she should make a public apology to the American people for her anti-American, antisemitic anti-police rhetoric.
'She continued to press and I continued to press back and then representative Omar hung up on me.
'Rejecting an apology and hanging up on someone is part of cancel culture 101.'
It comes after Boebert was caught on video making an Islamophobic joke about sharing an elevator with Omar.
'"Well, she doesn't have a backpack. We should be fine,'" Boebert recalled while addressing supporters during the holiday break.
"And I said, 'Oh look, the jihad squad decided to show up for work today."'
Her comments attracted widespread criticism and calls for punishment.
'Saying I am a suicide bomber is no laughing matter,' Omar tweeted Friday. '[GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy] and [Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi] need to take appropriate action, normalizing this bigotry not only endangers my life but the lives of all Muslims. Anti-Muslim bigotry has no place in Congress.'
The Congressional Black Caucus also issued a condemnation of Boebert Friday, saying her conduct was 'morally reprehensible and dangerous' and would lead to further death threats on Omar's family.
Boebert offered an apology on Twitter Friday to the Muslim community, but said that she would speak with Rep Omar directly
Lauren Boebert, the Colorado congresswoman, was at an event where she told a story about Ilhan Omar, representative for Minnesota
Ilhan Omar, pictured on September 21, is - along with Rashida Tlaib - one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress
Omar asked Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy to punish Boebert
The Congressional Black Caucus offered their own condemnation of Boebert's words
Boebert tweeted Thursday: 'I apologize to anyone in the Muslim community I offended with my comment about Rep Omar. I have reached out to her office to speak with her directly.
'There are plenty of policy differences to focus on without unnecessary distraction.'
She published a video message on Monday afternoon, saying that a conversation - albeit truncated - had happened.
'I will continue to fearlessly put America first, never sympathizing with terrorists,' she said.
'Unfortunately, Ilhan can't say the same thing. And our country is worse off for it.'
Boebert has made a quick name for herself in Washington since taking up her seat in January, part of a new generation of lawmakers that sees controversy as their currency.
She has delighted in trolling liberals, insisting on her right to bring a gun onto the floor of
