“I will end every relationship you have!”

It would be hard to argue against the idea that Congress is failing in its efforts to govern this nation, so it's a little strange that we expect members to be able to govern its affairs better.

Earlier this year, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) was caught on tape verbally abusing her staff, and now there's a report involving a member across the aisle threatening a former employee

U.S. Rep. Brandon Williams (R-NY) was caught on camera aggressively threatening a man identified in captions as his former campaign manager. The stunned former employee denied doing anything as Williams jabbed a finger in his face.

“Fuck my family, I will end every relationship you have. Every friend! Do you understand me?” the legislator can be heard saying.

EXCLUSIVE BREAKING VIDEO: @Brandon4ny22 yells and threatens his former campaign manager and chief of staff at a holiday charity event in DC. @CitrusTVNews @RepWilliams: “F*CK my family, I'll end every relationship you have!” #NY22 pic.twitter.com/VV6SYWevNp

— Luke Radel (@lukeradel) December 1, 2023

Visibly shaken, the man tried to protest, saying, “I don't know what you are…”

But Williams was having none of it, shouting, “Do you understand me?! You think I don't?!”

When a woman chimed in off camera, the first-term lawmaker turned to her and said, “Hey, why don't you bring the police in?”

Realizing he was being recorded by another former employee, Williams appeared to grab the device used to capture his actions as the video cut.

Williams later told news outlet Semafor that the man he confronted said “incredibly vile things” about his wife and daughter.

“There are some things that have been said and I went up and said it's not okay,” he said, before claiming one of the two employees “put his hands on me and put his chest against me “.

“I haven't said anything about his family,” the former employee told Semafor, asking not to be named to avoid implicating his current employer.

He said Williams had confronted him about rumors he didn't know about.

The congressman's wife, Stephanie Williams, said she felt “violated” by the ordeal, according to Semafor, explaining that one of the former employees had previously lived in her home for more than five months.

“I fed him, we took him into our home, we worshiped with him,” she explained. “I mean, I'm overwhelmed with pain.”

Williams spokesman Taylor Weyeneth tweeted a statement about the matchup.

Here's what was left out of the video:

What you are seeing are two former employees who were fired by the deputy earlier this year. Both individuals, the one confronting the congressman and the one filming, made rude comments about female members of the… https://t.co/nmDGiNQcwX

— Taylor Weyeneth (@TaylorWeyeneth) December 1, 2023

“What you are seeing are two former employees who were fired by the deputy earlier this year,” he wrote. “Both individuals, the one confronting the congressman and the one filming, made rude comments about female members of the congressman's family. These people planted stories in the media and one of them physically pushed the congressman at a holiday event (edited from video).

“As a former nuclear submarine officer known for his temper and poise, tonight should be a lesson to all, never go after the family of this Navy Nuke,” he added.

Here's a sampling of some responses to the story, as seen in X:

“Look what had happened was…”

— Dr. Babs (@canapp98) December 1, 2023

Very embarrassing if this guy is the model of temper and poise. It sets the bar incredibly low for everyone else.

— RIP AAF (2019-2019) (@GuessBester) December 1, 2023

It's called “a time and a place.” He's not really the type of man that's needed right now.

— Embarrassed Tom C (@EmbarrassedTomC) December 1, 2023

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