Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-CortezOn The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline McCarthy says there will be a peaceful transition if Biden wins Anxious Democrats amp up pressure for vote on COVID-19 aid MORE (D-N.Y.) bashed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellTrump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance On The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline The Hill's Campaign Report: Trump faces backlash after not committing to peaceful transition of power MORE (R-Ky.) on Tuesday after he defended President Trump from charges of racism.

The New York Democrat accused McConnell of being "complicit in advancing racism" after he declined to directly condemn tweets from Trump telling Ocasio-Cortez and three other congresswomen to "go back" to foreign countries.

Trump's tweets targeted Ocasio-Cortez and Reps. Rashida Tlaib Rashida Harbi TlaibTrump attacks Omar for criticizing US: 'How did you do where you came from?' George Conway: 'Trump is like a practical joke that got out of hand' Pelosi endorses Kennedy in Massachusetts Senate primary challenge MORE (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omar Ilhan OmarOmar fires back at Trump over rally remarks: 'This is my country' Trump attacks Omar for criticizing US: 'How did you do where you came from?' Democrats scramble on COVID-19 relief amid division, Trump surprise MORE (D-Minn.) and Ayanna Pressley Ayanna PressleyFauci, Black Lives Matter founders included on Time's 100 Most Influential People list Trump attacks Omar for criticizing US: 'How did you do where you came from?' Pressley applauded on House floor after moving speech on living with alopecia MORE (D-Mass.). All of the lawmakers targeted by Trump are U.S. citizens, and all but one were born in the U.S.

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“When you tell American citizens to go back to their country, especially when we are sworn citizens and duly elected by fellow American citizens … that has everything to do with race,” Ocasio-Cortez told ABC News.

“They have targeted four congresswomen of color who are American citizens with a classic line of white supremacy,” she continued. “And they are trying to pivot, and they are trying to excuse it, and frankly the majority leader is complicit in advancing racism in America if he doesn’t even have the backbone to speak out against most basic, basic line.”

JUST IN: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tells @SerenaMarsh Senate Majority Leader is "complicit in advancing racism in America" for not criticizing Trump.



"When you tell American citizens to go back to their country ... that has everything to do with race" https://t.co/5YIpd4Iv6d pic.twitter.com/TqK8I8hWwJ — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) July 16, 2019

McConnell insisted Trump was not a racist when asked about the tweets Tuesday, instead saying that “all different ideological points of view” were guilty of “overheated” rhetoric.

“From the president to the Speaker to freshman members of the House — all of us have the responsibility to elevate the public discourse,” he said.

Asked how he would respond if someone told his wife, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao Elaine Lan ChaoChick-fil-A drops fight for San Antonio airport location Overnight Defense: US marks 19th anniversary of 9/11 attacks | Trump awards Medal of Honor to Army Ranger for hostage rescue mission | Bahrain, Israel normalizing diplomatic ties Trump marks 9/11 with moment of silence on Air Force One, remarks in PA MORE, to go back to Taiwan, where she was born, McConnell said Chao came to the U.S. legally.

Omar, the only target of Trump’s tweet born outside the U.S., also entered the country legally and is a U.S. citizen.

"I think there’s a consensus that political rhetoric has really gotten way, way overheated all across the political spectrum," McConnell said in prepared remarks.

"Lower all this incendiary rhetoric. Everyone should do it," he added in response to a question.