A Republican subcommittee chairman accused Elizabeth Warren of lying to Congress. | AP photo Warren hearing turns ugly

A congressional hearing turned ugly Tuesday with accusations flying that a White House official misled Congress in March and lied again on Tuesday.

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) got into the back-and-forth with Elizabeth Warren, the president’s special adviser to a new consumer protection bureau, over previous testimony she made to Congress about the role of the agency.


Warren was repeatedly cut off, while GOP lawmakers demanded “yes” or “no” answers to their questions.

The hearing before McHenry’s Oversight subcommittee was one of many appearances Warren has made on the Hill to defend the consumer watchdog created by the Dodd-Frank financial reform law passed last summer. Republicans have loathed the agency since its inception. Warren has become a conservative lightening rod, unlikely to muster Republican support in the Senate needed to serve as the agency’s official head.

The sparring between McHenry and Warren came to a boil when the chairman attempted to keep the former Harvard Law professor in the room for two final questions as lawmakers broke to vote on the floor. The start-time of the hearing already had been pushed up at the last minute by nearly an hour to accommodate votes.

Warren claimed she agreed to appear before the panel until 2:15 pm, but not any longer than that. Waiting for the panel to reconvene would not work for her schedule, she told the committee members.

“You had no agreement… you’re making this up, Ms. Warren. You’re simply — this is not the case,” McHenry said before being interrupted by a Democrat on the committee, Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland.

Cummings cut in, telling McHenry: “Mr. Chairman, you just did something that — I’m trying to be cordial here — but you just accused the lady of lying,” Cummings said.

McHenry then asked the Maryland Democrat to “simmer,” to which Cummings responded: “I’m cool.”

Hours later, McHenry still seemed fired up, releasing a follow-up statement and continuing his attack.

“I was shocked by Ms. Warren’s blatant sense of entitlement,” he said in a statement. “She was apparently under the assumption that she could dictate a one hour time limit for her testimony to Congress and that we were there at her behest instead of the other way around. This is just further example of her disregard for congressional oversight.”

The statement went on: “Committee staff worked diligently to accommodate Ms. Warren’s schedule. The hearing was scheduled on a day of her choosing, incorporating the likelihood of votes to ensure she would not be interrupted during questions, and allowing for all participating members to speak.”

Warren, while technically an employee of the Treasury, is the unofficial head of the consumer bureau she helped build in the original Dodd-Frank bill. Her supporters hope President Barack Obama will appoint her to the position during a congressional recess, as Senate Republicans are unlikely to confirm her.