Republican Sen. Martha McSally lashed out at a CNN reporter Thursday morning, calling him a 'liberal hack' and blowing off his question.
CNN's Manu Raju, a familiar face on Capitol Hill, tried to grab a response from McSally, who's up for re-election in the increasingly purple state of Arizona, about the upcoming Senate impeachment trial of President Trump.
'Senator McSally, should the Senate consider new evidence as part of the impeachment trial?' Raju asked McSally as she walked down the hallway of a Senate office building.
Sen. Martha McSally (left) called CNN reporter Manu Raju (right) a 'liberal hack' during a Thursday morning encounter on Capitol Hill
CNN's Manu Raju tweeted about the exchange afterward, saying that Sen. Martha McSally 'lashed out' at him
Sen. Martha McSally faces a tough fight in a Senate special election later this year. She was sppointed to the seat that once belonged to the late Republican Sen. John McCain
A staffer of Sen. Martha McSally filmed the exchange and then posted it to her Senate Twitter account with her reaction
The @TrumpWarRoom Twitter account also picked it up and used it as a way to raise funds for Sen. Martha McSally, who could face Democrat Mark Kelly, the husband of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, in the Arizona special election
Followed by her staff, one of whom filmed the encounter, she addressed the reporter by name.
'Manu, you're a liberal hack, I'm not talking to you,' she answered.
CNN's Manu Raju had asked Sen. Martha McSally if new evidence should be presented in the president's impeachment trial
Raju followed up by asking, 'You're not going to comment, senator?'
'You're a liberal hack, buddy,' she said.
The drama continued to play out on Twitter.
'Sen. Martha McSally, a Republican facing a difficult election race, lashed out when I asked if she would consider new evidence as part of the Senate trial,' was how Raju described his encounter with the senator on his Twitter account.
McSally's Congressional Twitter account shared her aide's footage.
'A) you are. B) here’s the video,' the tweet said.
President Trump's @TrumpWarRoom account tweeted video of the back-and-forth.
'THREE CHEERS for Senator @MarthaMcSally!!! THIS is how you handle FAKE NEWS,' the tweets said. 'DONATE to Martha NOW,' it instructed Trump supporters, linking to a donation page for McSally's re-election page.
McSally came to the Senate in a circuitous way.
She ran for an Arizona Senate seat in 2018, but lost to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema by two points, a tell that the state was becoming more blue.
After the death of long-serving Arizona Sen. John McCain, former Arizona Sen. Jon Kyle briefly filled the seat and then Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey - a Republican - appointed McSally to fill out the term until a special election this year.
Should she win, she'll have to compete for the seat again in 2022, as the special election only dictates who serves the rest of McCain's term.
McSally could end up facing former astronaut Mark Kelly in the special election.
Kelly, who is married to former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, is one of the Democratic candidates vying to take McSally's seat.
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