Democratic Rep. Joseph Crowley (N.Y.) compared House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to an ancient Roman leader in an interview that aired Sunday.

“I have nothing but the utmost respect for Nancy Pelosi," he said, despite recent criticism of the minority leader after several Democratic losses in special elections.

"I think she’s one of the smartest and hardest working members," Crowley, who is chairman of the House Democratic caucus, told John Catsimatidis on AM 970 in New York. "If we were living during the Roman Empire, she would be a centurion's centurion. In fact, I think she’d be Casear."

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“She’s a tough cookie and she’s a great strategist as well,” he continued.

Pelosi is not the only political figure to be compared to a Roman leader. A New York production of William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” depicted the slain dictator as President Trump.

Speculation has also grown around Crowley, who is the fourth-highest-ranking House Democrat, that he could be a potential replacement for Pelosi.

“I take solace and I’m humbled by even being thought of as a possible person who can lead our caucus in the future in terms of leader,” he said.