US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared to take another thinly veiled shot at the success of rising Democrat Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez by claiming that a 'glass of water with a D next to its name' would have won her seat.

Pelosi, 79, was speaking at the London School of Economics on Monday where she said that the Democratic Party must avoid the 'menace' of liberal policies pushed by rising political stars if it wants to beat President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

She also used the appearance to set out a centrist vision she believes could help woo Republican voters frustrated with Trump's approach.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, 79, was speaking at the London School of Economics when she made the comments

Pelosi added that New York Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez, popularly referred to as AOC, and fellow young progressives elected in 2018 represented only the margins of American society.

In reference to the November midterms, where the Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives, she picked up a glass and said: 'When we won this election, it wasn't in districts like mine or Alexandria's.

'Those are districts that are solidly Democratic - this glass of whatever would win with a D next to its name in those districts.'

During the talk, she also shared her own liberal upbringing and accomplishments while representing the Democratic voters of San Francisco.

She said: 'I can compare my liberal credentials across the board. I said to them: ''Anything you're about, I got that sign in my basement 20 years ago''.

Speaking at the event, she claimed that a glass of water 'with a D next to it' would have won AOC's district

'What we are saying is, to have a message that appeals to people in a way that does not menace them.

'I share those values - but we must win.'

Her words come after she appeared to belittle Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's affiliation with a progressive group in Congress in a new interview.

In the sit-down with Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes on Sunday, the 79-year-old Pelosi was asked about pushback she received from the left-wing of her own party.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, popularly referred to as AOC, is a rising star in the Democrat party

'You have these wings - AOC, and her group on one side,' Stahl begins asking her.

'That's like five people,' Pelosi interjected.

'No, it's - the progressive group is more than five,' Stahl responds.

'Well, the progressive - I'm a progressive. Yeah,' the Speaker adds.

Pelosi may have been referring to the Justice Democrats, a political action committee that supported a small slate of seven representatives that includes Ocasio-Cortez.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus, however, includes 78 members of the House of Representatives and Senator Bernie Sanders, according to its website.

Earlier this month, Pelosi also appeared to take a subtle swipe at Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez while discussing members of Congress with large Twitter followings.

The latest dig comes after she dismissed the progressive wing associated with AOC during an interview with 60 Minutes that aired on Sunday

She made it clear that the number of followers will not impress her, but rather how good representatives are at passing legislation.

'While there are people who have a large number of Twitter followers, what's important is that we have a large number of votes on the floor of the house,' she said on April 8.

Officially, Pelosi is in London to discuss the progress of Britain's efforts to withdraw from the European Union.

However, her visit has coincided with an ugly war of words that has pitted President Trump against the new breed of Democrats like Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar.

Trump accused Omar - the first black Muslim woman elected to Congress - in a tweet Monday of making 'anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and ungrateful US HATE statements'.

Speaker Pelosi vigorously deflected an appearance of conflict among her fellow Democrats to Lesley Stahl interviewing her on 60 Minutes while also brushing off issues like Medicare for all

Their latest spat concerns Omar's remarks about the treatment of American Muslims since the September 2001 terror attacks on New York and Washington.

Yet Omar's comments about US political backing for Israel being fuelled by money from a pro-Israel lobbying group led to criticism from both sides of the political aisle.

Pelosi used a meeting with Britain's opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn on Sunday to speak out against anti-Semitism in politics.

She tweeted after the meeting that she and Corbyn discussed the importance of 'protecting human rights, and the necessity of forcefully confronting anti-Semitism & Islamophobia'.

Corbyn has been under pressure from Jewish groups to more thoroughly investigate and clamp down on anti-Semitic incidents involving Labour members.

But Pelosi also stuck up for Omar in her current standoff with Trump.

'I don't think any president of the United States should use the tragedy of 9/11 as a political tool,' Pelosi said.