Ocasio-Cortez was questioning Wilbur Ross, President Donald Trump's secretary of commerce, when she made the statement. She began by referencing remarks Republican Kris Kobach made while he was Kansas secretary of state. Kobach encouraged Trump early on in his administration to add a 2020 consensus question about citizenship.
"Kobach said, ’I raised the issue with the president shortly after he was inaugurated' and ’he was absolutely interested in this,'" Ocasio-Cortez said. "Shortly thereafter, in April of 2017, Steve Bannon asked you to speak with Mr. Kobach about his ’ideas about including a citizenship question on the 2020 decennial census.'"
Ross acknowledged he did speak with Kobach early on in the administration, but he was cut off by Ocasio-Cortez before he could clarify what exactly the conversation was about.
"I'm sorry, I must reclaim my time," Ocasio-Cortez said.