Stefanik on the defensive from Cheney and Kinzinger over 'pedo grifters' remark

House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik on Monday issued a defensive statement over rhetoric critics say mirrors right-wing political extremist language, with her race characterization of Democrats as "pedo grifters" taking on a new cast after the racially motivated weekend shooting spree that left 10 people dead in Buffalo, New York.

Stefanik, the third-ranking House Republican, made her statement the day before the Buffalo supermarket shooting, which law enforcement officers said they suspect was the result of "racially motivated violent extremism."