Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.) sparked a congressional manners debate after she shouted "Shame on the Republicans" during a discussion of GOP farm legislation on the House floor Thursday.
Brown's was one of many tirades from Democrats angry that Republican leaders had omitted food stamps from their traditional place alongside agriculture subsidies in a bill that passed Thursday afternoon.
As soon as Brown said "Shame on the Republicans," Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Ga.) demanded that her words be stricken from the congressional record -- a procedure that would potentially necessitate a vote by the full House that would have lengthened a farm bill debate that had already taken longer than Republicans had expected.
Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), chairman of the House Agriculture Committee and the man running the day's proceedings, pounded his armrest in irritation.
Brown demanded to know what she'd done wrong but then returned to her seat. House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other Republicans crowded around Woodall for a few minutes, possibly asking him to withdraw his objection.
According to the House Rules Committee's website, members of Congress should "avoid impugning the motives of another Member, the Senate or the President, using offensive language, or uttering words that are otherwise deemed unparliamentary."
Woodall rose and went over to Brown, putting his hand on her arm as the two talked for about a minute. Then Woodall returned to the Republican side of the chamber and announced he would withdraw his request.
The request withdrawn, Brown returned to the podium.
"Mitt Romney was right," she said. "You all do not care about the 47 percent. Shame on you!"
Republicans in the chamber booed loudly. The fate of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program remains uncertain.
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