Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma took issue with International Brotherhood of Teamsters President Sean O'Brien, a Massachusetts native from Medford, calling the freshman congressman a "greedy CEO," a "clown," and a "fraud" on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Sir, this is a time, this is a place. If you want to run your mouth, we can be two consenting adults and finish it here,” Mullin said before standing up.
The 51-year-old O'Brien, not known for backing down from a fight, replied, "... Perfect."
The two squared off during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee hearing when Mullin decided to use his question time to turn the meeting into a UFC fight promotion.
“You want to do it now?” the 46-year-old Mullin asked. “Stand your butt up then.”
“You stand your butt up, big guy,” O’Brien snapped back.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, the committee chairman, slammed his gavel and demanded order after Mullin asked O'Brien to step into the hallway. Mullin took his seat but raged against the labor leader for several minutes after that.
O'Brien told Mullin he was behaving like a "12-year-old" "schoolyard bully."
Not wanting to leave the fight to the Halls of American Power, Mullin posted a photo of himself on X standing behind a table full of guns with the caption "Anyplace. Anytime."
In his original tweet, O'Brien showed a photo of Mullin in a debate standing on a box to be of a height with his opponent. "Drop the tough guy act," the Teamster president wrote. "You know where to find me. Anyplace, Anytime cowboy."
Mullin's website says he is a former undefeated mixed martial arts fighter with a professional record of 5-0. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2016.
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