South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson called Representative Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, “an entitled spoiled brat” in connection with the uproar over her interaction with security personnel at Charleston International Airport in October.
The two Republicans are both hoping to become South Carolina’s governor in an election next year.
Why It Matters
The airport incident has added to a string of high-profile moments for Mace, who has drawn national attention for breaking with Republican leadership on key votes while aligning herself with President Donald Trump and calling herself “MAGA Mace” on social media.
Her outspoken style has earned her both criticism and praise within her party. The bitter exchange with Wilson will heighten interest in the South Carolina gubernatorial contest and in how Trump might respond when it comes to a decision on an endorsement.
What To Know
According to a law enforcement report reviewed by Newsweek, officers from the Charleston County Aviation Authority Police Department were told to meet Mace at 6:30 a.m. at the ticketing curb. When she didn’t appear, they found her around 7 a.m. at a trusted traveler checkpoint.
Mace later said she used the same entrance “all members of Congress use.”
The report goes on to say that Mace began shouting at officers, insisting “this is no way to treat a U.S. representative” as she was escorted to her gate. “The entire walk to gate B-8 she was cursing and complaining and often doing the same into her phone,” an officer writes in the report.
Mace told CNN in an interview that the police report into the incident, and suggestions that she had cursed at police officers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) personnel, were falsified.
“I have never called a cop an idiot, that is a remarkably false statement,” she said. “I am absolutely saying that that report was falsified, 100 percent fictitious.”
She described the uproar over her behaviour at the airport as a “political hit job.” Asked who she thought might be behind the hit job, she said: “Oh, it was the Attorney General Alan Wilson.”
Wilson said Mace’s assertion that he was involved was “a categorical lie.” He told CNN: “It’s also delusional and crazy for her to make these kind of crazy accusations.”
“It’s not my fault that Ms. Mace showed up late…at the airport. It’s not my fault that she showed up at the wrong location. I did not make her cuss out the men and women at the TSA and security checkpoint. I did not make her tweet about this 100 times in the days that followed,” Wilson said.
“She’s saying things that are delusional and this basically reminds me of a spoiled brat, an entitled spoiled brat… You have multiple witness statements corroborating the same thing.”
What People Are Saying
Cameron Morabito, Mace’s director of operations, told Newsweek via email in October: “We are forced to take the Congresswoman’s safety extremely seriously. After the world watched Charlie Kirk’s assassination, the threats against her have only intensified. Our security procedures are based solely on legitimate safety concerns, and any attempt to politicize this reality is both dangerous and reckless.”
What Happens Next
South Carolina’s gubernatorial election is scheduled to take place on November 3, 2026.
