From the perspective of some House Democrats, Rep. Maxine Waters Maxine Moore WatersPowell, Mnuchin stress limits of current emergency lending programs Pelosi: House will stay in session until agreement is reached on coronavirus relief Omar invokes father's death from coronavirus in reaction to Woodward book MORE (D-Calif.) has the right message. She’s just not always the best messenger.

The Los Angeles lawmaker’s early calls for President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE’s impeachment and viral showdowns with administration officials have endeared Waters to the party’s young, liberal base. And those stances have also garnered the respect of many House Democrats, who admire how Waters, 79, sticks to her political convictions.

"She is up-to-date, she is smart, she is authentic and she is not scared to express herself,” Rep. Gwen Moore Gwen Sophia MooreTexas Democrat: US natural gas vital in transition to renewables The Hill's Convention Report: Democratic National Convention kicks off virtually The Hill's 12:30 Report: Postal Service crisis escalates MORE (D-Wis.) told The Hill, adding that her constituents in Milwaukee often ask her if she knows Waters. "She is transformative in terms of appealing to different generations of people.”

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Yet her most recent remarks — encouraging public confrontation with Cabinet members — rankled some of those colleagues and raised concerns about how Waters would handle increased authority if Democrats regain control of the House in November.

House and Senate minority leaders Nancy Pelosi Nancy PelosiHoyer: House should vote on COVID-19 aid — with or without a bipartisan deal Ruth Bader Ginsburg lies in repose at Supreme Court McCarthy threatens motion to oust Pelosi if she moves forward with impeachment MORE (D-Calif.) and Charles Schumer Chuck SchumerCruz blocks amended resolution honoring Ginsburg over language about her dying wish Senate Democrats introduce legislation to probe politicization of pandemic response Schumer interrupted during live briefing by heckler: 'Stop lying to the people' MORE (D-N.Y.) condemned her comments, while other Democrats distanced themselves from her.

Waters is aware that she sometimes pushes the envelope, according to a former aide who said the congresswoman thinks Democrats as a whole have engaged in "nice guy politics" for too long.

“She’s definitely pushing people into a place of discomfort,” said the former aide, adding that Waters is “slowly but surely getting the Democrats to play the game the way Trump plays it.”

The former staffer said that Trump’s 2016 mimicking of Serge Kovaleski, a New York Times reporter who has a physical disability, “ignited her fire.”

“That was the moment that really spurred her to speak out against him,” the former staffer said. “It was a moment that I think snapped her into accepting this is now our reality and accepting her role as an emerging soldier against this administration.”

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That kind of approach has led to concern among some Democrats, including those on the House Financial Services Committee, where Waters is poised to wield the gavel next year if Democrats are in the majority.

One Democrat on the panel told The Hill that a few members of the committee are worried that Waters’s recent remarks about confronting administration officials are a sign that she’s itching to lead a crusade against Trump.

“We've got a division, because some people are very concerned that she's going to be pushing an ideological agenda,” said the lawmaker. "We can have disagreements on the substance, and that's fine. I just want to make sure it doesn't become like a show."

Waters, who declined an interview for this article, said in a statement that she’s eager to “work with Members [from] both sides of the aisle on sensible solutions to benefit hardworking Americans and strengthen our nation’s economy."

"She works really hard, she's opinionated on some things,” said Rep. Ed Perlmutter Edwin (Ed) George PerlmutterCongress needs to finalize space weather bill as solar storms pose heightened threat OVERNIGHT ENERGY: 20 states sue over Trump rule limiting states from blocking pipeline projects | House Democrats add 'forever chemicals' provisions to defense bill after spiking big amendment | Lawmakers seek extension for tribes to spend stimulus money House Democrats add some 'forever chemicals' provisions to defense bill after spiking major amendment MORE (D-Colo.), who serves with Waters on the Financial Services panel. "She also takes some very hard stands, and you know the Republicans don't like it and they try to push back. But she's every bit as tough or tougher than they are."

Though Democrats generally hold Waters in high regard, her willingness to explore the boundaries of opposition to Trump has caused unease among some colleagues.

Waters was one of the first members of Congress to call for Trump’s impeachment, and she has voted twice in favor of resolutions that would begin the process. Democratic leaders have tried to quash talk of impeaching Trump, a move they consider premature and a distraction from their campaign message aimed at regaining control of the House in the midterm elections this fall.

But her supporters have spoken out in her defense following the onslaught of criticism stemming from her most recent remarks, insisting that they were misconstrued by critics and came nowhere close to the violence that Trump advocated for on the campaign trail.

“What Maxine and her generation did was make this country a better country by protesting, by sitting at lunch counters, by marching,” said Rep. Cedric Richmond Cedric Levon RichmondRep. Bill Pascrell named chair of House oversight panel Rep. Cedric Richmond set to join House Ways and Means Committee Biden campaign ratchets up courting of Black voters, specifically Black men MORE (D-La.), chairman of Congressional Black Caucus, which Waters led from 1997 to 1999. “She reached back into that era of saying, 'When you see them, protest.'”

Waters, who has served in the House since 1991, said her comments were a call for political pressure, not violence, and that any conversation about civility should start with Trump’s conduct.

Despite her abrasive public manner, some Democrats say she takes a different approach when it comes to getting things done at the committee level.

“There are disagreements that come up from time to time, and we try to hammer them out the best we can,” Perlmutter said.

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Waters has worked with her Republican colleagues on important compromise legislation, including a bipartisan flood insurance overhaul package. She has also allowed Democratic members on the panel, some who have deep Wall Street ties, to pursue bipartisan measures that she opposes.

Most of Waters’s Democratic colleagues speak about her with reverence and respect when asked about her work in Congress, calling her a studious, fearless leader.

Those close to her say that she’s used to public and private pushback from her colleagues and won’t be deterred by the controversy surrounding her anti-Trump remarks.

"She is very, very much a minority in the House of Representatives, and that hasn't dissuaded her from speaking her truth in a room surrounded by people who do not look like her,” her former aide said. "It's easy to be quieted because you're scared, and she's not scared.”