Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida accused Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin of berating her and then smacking her during a confrontation captured on video. The incident occurred as Luna walked from the U.S. Capitol after questioning Secretary of State Marco Rubio, when Benjamin approached with questions that escalated into an exchange now circulating online.
In the video, Benjamin asserted: “These are not ‘allegations.’ It happened. My staff was there when it happened and wrote statements.” She also added: “Marco Rubio has been sanctioning the Cuban people, which is hurting them by the billions!”
Luna responded with: “You just touched me! You’re going to walk away right now, or else I’m going to call Capitol Police!” After a brief moment, Luna stated: “OK, I will walk away. Bye-bye!”
Luna later announced on social media that she would file criminal charges against Benjamin.
