Updated: 2:47 p.m.

Freshman Rep. Bobby Bright (D-Ala.) joked Wednesday that Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) could get sick and die soon during remarks at a district event, the Montgomery Advertiser reported.

During a speech at a local chamber of commerce event, the conservative Democrat joked that Pelosi “might lose her own election, decide not to run for the Speaker’s job or otherwise not be available,” according to the Montgomery newspaper. He then said “jokingly” that Pelosi could “fall ill and die in the coming months,” a remark that reportedly drew laughter from the crowd.

Bright, who has bucked his party on issues such as health care reform and who stands to benefit by politically from distancing himself from Pelosi, was responding to questions about whether he backed the California liberal keeping the Speaker’s gavel after the November elections.

Neither Bright’s campaign nor Pelosi’s office immediately responded to a request for a comment.

A Democratic source involved in campaigns described Bright’s comments as “inartful” but said there is nothing new about the Alabama Democrat making sure to draw contrasts with his party leaders.

“Take the words out of it and go to the substance — he wasn’t saying anything that was necessarily surprising,” the source said.