AOC warns about 'hysteria' over rising crime just months after accusing GOP colleagues of trying to murder her

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) during a virtual town hall event on Friday claimed that concerns over skyrocketing crime rates across America are "hysteria."

Ocasio-Cortez later agreed with far-left Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) who said during the video event that law enforcement should be defunded.

The progressive Squad member and Bowman have both been staunch proponents of the "Defund the Police" movement.

Bowman, however, despite his fiery rhetoric against "white supremacist" police, begged the Yonkers Police Department for increased police presence where he lives due to alleged "death threats" after the Capitol Hill riot on Jan. 6.

The pair discuss how to push the defunding police agenda further, despite the disastrous results it has produced. Ocasio-Cortez tells her congressional colleague:

"We are seeing these headlines about percentage increases [of violent crimes]. Now, I wanna say that any amount of harm is unacceptable and too much."

"But, I also wanna make sure that this hysteria ... you know, that this doesn't drive a hysteria, and that we look at these numbers in context so that we can make responsible decisions about what to allocate ... in that context," she added.

Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald pointed out that just last month, Ocasio-Cortez had the power to stop $2 billion in additional funds for the Capitol Police that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wanted. All she had to do was vote "no" like Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Cori Bush (D-MO), and Aryanna Pressley (D-MA).

"Instead, she voted 'present' to get more police protection for herself," he said.

Greenwald claimed that Ocasio-Cortez is mocking ordinary people as "hysterical" who are afraid of violent crime in local neighborhoods, noting that individuals unlike the New York lawmaker "don't have reams of private security."

"Yet she just acted to ensure $2 billion more in spending on the police that protects her," Greenwald fired back Sunday on Twitter.

"Like AOC, I also really get upset when people are 'hysterical' about fears of violent crime," Greenwald countered. In the aftermath of the Jan. 6 riot, Ocasio-Cortez claimed that Republicans in Congress almost had her "murdered."

"Happy to work w/ almost any other GOP that aren't trying to get me killed. In the meantime if you want to help, you can resign," she told Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).