The state senator who tweeted "fuck you" to Missouri Governor Jay Nixon (D) last week defended her harsh choice of words, saying that "anyone who's going to get tear-gassed deserves to say a few f-bombs here and there."
State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, a Democrat who represents parts of Ferguson, Missouri, was tear-gassed by police last week while peacefully protesting the death of Michael Brown, the unarmed African-American teenager shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer.
In a Monday interview with Fox News, Chappelle-Nadal said the persistent use of tear gas prompted her to send multiple tweets the governor's way.
"The reason why I used profane language is because he has allowed us to get tear-gassed for three days," she said. "I am one of his senators in his party, and he was at the state fair enjoying a country concert while we were getting teargassed and shot at. And yes, anyone who's going to get tear-gassed deserves to say a few f-bombs here and there."
Nixon, amid criticism over his lack of response to the growing protests, canceled a scheduled appearance at the Missouri State Fair last week.
Although the tweets came before Nixon's visit to Ferguson last Thursday, Chappelle-Nadal said Monday that he had still not done enough to reach out to Ferguson's black community.
"He has still yet to come to ground zero," she told Fox. "He has not spoken to the people who are the victims of this crisis that we're dealing with now, and that is why I have called him a coward."
(h/t BuzzFeed)