House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had quite a tussle on Tuesday over whether he had to stay for a hearing.

Mnuchin testified before the House committee for over three hours, and it became obvious right out of the gate that Waters was going for blood.

Waters used her first question to ask Mnuchin whether he would comply with a Democratic request for copies of six years of President Donald Trump’s business and personal tax returns.

His answer, unsurprising to many, was no.

“I want to acknowledge we have received the request. As I said before, we will follow the law. We are reviewing it with our internal legal department and I would leave it at that,” he told Waters, who was visibly not too thrilled with that answer.

In testy exchange, Rep. Maxine Waters tells Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, "no other secretary has ever told us the day before that they were going to limit their time." "You're ordering me to stay here …. that's not what I want to do," Mnuchin says https://t.co/tFCpfQzXeL pic.twitter.com/H7je3oxk6G — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) April 9, 2019

While most of the hearing consisted of Waters and her Democratic colleagues continuously asking Mnuchin to turn over Trump’s tax returns — which he repeatedly declined — the real fireworks came towards the end.

Tempers boiled over when Mnuchin informed Waters that he needed to end his voluntary testimony early because he had a prearranged meeting with foreign dignitary and didn’t have time for Waters and her crew to keep grilling him over Trump’s tax returns.

Waters stared at Mnuchin with a blank face before threatening him that if he didn’t stay for the entire hearing, she would compel him to return in May for “multiple hearings.”

Then, Waters bizarrely told Mnuchin that he could leave, but declined to end the hearing, and sat there looking around for other members to question the Treasury secretary.

Mnuchin said he would come back to testify in May, but said there was no way he would sit for two hearings.

This ticked off Waters, who leaned forward in her seat and declared, “This is a new way, this is a new day, this is a new chair, and I have the gavel.”

After some cross talk, a frustrated Mnuchin shot back, “I believe you’re supposed to take the gavel and bang it,” he mockingly said to Waters.

“If you wish to keep me here so that I don’t have my important meeting and continue to grill me, then we can do that. I will cancel my meeting and I will not be back here, I will be very clear, if that’s the way you would like to have this relationship,” Mnuchin said.

After speaking with a legal adviser, who was sitting behind him, Mnuchin said he was there voluntarily and had no obligation to stay, adding, “I’ve withdrawn my offer to voluntarily come back.”

Waters, perhaps accepting defeat and realizing that Mnuchin didn’t have to stay, responded, “You may choose to do whatever you want.”

Treasury Secretary Mnuchin after being asked to stay at hearing by Rep. Maxine Waters: "I've just been advised that I'm under no obligation to stay … I've withdrawn my offer to voluntarily come back." Waters: "You may choose to do whatever you want" https://t.co/tFCpfQzXeL pic.twitter.com/1ZCyGJPB6i — ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) April 9, 2019

This isn’t the first time Waters has lost her cool with Mnuchin.

During a hearing in July 2017 before the House Financial Services Committee, Waters interrupted Mnuchin 12 times while he was trying to give a single answer.

The exchange began when Mnuchin had a question about the hearing rules.

“Mr. Chairman, I thought when you read the rules, you acknowledged I shouldn’t be interrupted and that I would have—,” Mnuchin said to committee chairman Jeb Hensarling.

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“Reclaiming my time,” Waters interjected. “What he failed to tell you was, when you are on my time, I can reclaim it.”

She went on to demand an answer to her question about why the Secretary allegedly did not answer a letter she had sent him.

“I was going to tell you my response,” he said, before Waters interrupted, “Just tell me.”

When Mnuchin tried to answer the question, Waters cut him off again.

“Reclaiming my time. Reclaiming my time. Reclaiming my time. Reclaiming my time. Reclaiming my time,” Waters shouted over Mnuchin.

Waters interrupted his single answer 12 times with her “reclaiming my time” line.