Tag: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

The problem with using the Squad as a proxy for ‘socialism’

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It is more than 500 days until he’s up for reelection, but Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) isn’t taking any chances.

In an interview with Fox News over the weekend, he bashed Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), a potential Democratic challenger in that race and one who is generally seen as most likely to earn her party’s nomination. He compared her to a group of House Democrats that calls itself “the Squad,” a group that includes Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) and Ilhan Omar (Minn.).

“None of them will admit to being a socialist. She probably won’t. But she certainly has voted for socialist things,” Rubio said of Demings. “How can you vote with the Squad 94 percent of the time and argue that you’re not an honorary member of that group? How can you vote with [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi 100 percent of the time and argue that you’re not a far-left, liberal extremist?” Continue reading.

Rep. Greene aggressively confronts Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, causing New York congresswoman to raise security concerns

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Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene aggressively confronted Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Wednesday and falsely accused her of supporting “terrorists,” leading the New York congresswoman’s office to call on leadership to ensure that Congress remains “a safe, civil place for all Members and staff.”

Two Washington Post reporters witnessed Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) exit the House chamber late Wednesday afternoon ahead of Greene (Ga.), who shouted “Hey Alexandria” twice in an effort to get her attention. When Ocasio-Cortez did not stop walking, Greene picked up her pace and began shouting at her and asking why she supports antifa, a loosely knit group of far-left activists, and Black Lives Matter, falsely labeling them “terrorist” groups. Greene also shouted that Ocasio-Cortez was failing to defend her “radical socialist” beliefs by declining to publicly debate the freshman from Georgia.

“You don’t care about the American people,” Greene shouted. “Why do you support terrorists and antifa?” Continue reading.

Marjorie Greene wants to debate AOC over the Green New Deal — but admits she’s yet to read ‘all 14 pages’ of the bill

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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) claims she is interested in debating Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over the details of the Green New Deal. According to Business Insider, Greene on Wednesday, April 21, tweeted about the possibility of her and the Democratic lawmaker scheduling a debate in the near future. 

Greene’s tweet came shortly after the two lawmakers talked on the House floor about Ocasio-Cortez’s environmental proposal. However, Greene insisted she would only be willing to debate after reading “all 14 pages.”

“I’m glad I ran into you today [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ] to plan our debate about the Green New Deal,” Greene tweeted. “After I finish reading all 14 pages, like we agreed, I’ll schedule time for our debate.” Continue reading.

While Ted Cruz was rushing back to America, AOC raised $1 million for the people of Texas

Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz and right wing extremists Erick Erickson, Dinesh D’Souza, Ben Shapiro, and Donald Trump, Jr., all thought there was nothing a sitting U.S. Senator could do for the millions of people freezing and starving in the Lone Star State.

After massive internet outrage – outrage that was called “cancel culture” today in a rant from Trump Jr. – Senator Cruz hightailed it back to America from his Cancun crash pad at the Ritz Carlton, put out a statement lying about the origins of his Mexico excursion, literally lied some more, and came home to a his Houston home that was empty except for his dog Snowflake and his security guard hanging out in his car in the driveway.

While the Texas Senator was doing all this, a Congresswoman from New York City went to work for his constituents, because someone had to. Continue reading.

At AOC-organized floor session, Democrats share tears, fears from Capitol storming

‘Some are already demanding that we move on,’ New York Democrat says

Fighting through tears, Rep. Rashida Tlaib described her first memory of Congress. “On my very first day of orientation, I got my first death threat,” she said. “I didn’t even get sworn in yet and someone wanted me dead for just existing.”

The death threats kept coming, Tlaib said, speaking at a special floor session Thursday night organized by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who placed a hand on her back to comfort her.

“One celebrating, in writing, the New Zealand massacre and hoping that more would come. Another mentioned my dear son Adam, mentioning him by name,” she said, choking up at the thought of her teenage son. Continue reading.

AOC explains why Republicans can’t just tell her to forget about the insurrection and move on

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she was told that trauma victims should “tell their stories” as a part of their healing. And that is what she did Monday night in the most compelling, heartbreaking and infuriating 60 minutes available on any screen, at any time this week. The New York congresswoman initiated a live stream on Instagram and, against a plain white wall and with little fanfare, recounted what had happened to her during the violent invasion of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

She talked about flattening herself behind her bathroom door as someone entered her office, screaming, “Where is she? Where is she?” It turned out to be a police officer, but until she learned that, “I thought I was going to die.”

She talked about eventually escaping to the office of Rep. Katie Porter (Calif.), where the two Democratic congresswomen rifled through staffers’ gym bags, searching for sneakers they could change into in case they needed to jump out a window or run. About how they debated what to do if they had to flee again, wondering: “Are some offices safer than others, because they have white-sounding names or male-sounding names?” Continue reading.

USPS releases DeJoy calendar that is ‘almost entirely redacted’ — months after AOC demand and federal suit

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Nearly four months after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez first demanded that Postmaster General Louis DeJoy turn over his daily calendar, the U.S. Postal Service on Tuesday released documents rendered almost completely useless by heavy redactions concealing who DeJoy met with as he worked to implement his destructive overhaul of mail operations.

The Postal Service released DeJoy’s calendar in response to a public records lawsuit filed in September by watchdog group American Oversight, which was not at all amused by what it finally received from the agency.

“Shrouding his calendar in secrecy likely violates the letter of the law, and certainly violates its spirit,” Austin Evers, executive director of American Oversight, told HuffPost. “DeJoy works for the public, but you wouldn’t know it from his calendar. Even in the Trump era, this is an extraordinary level of obfuscation.” Continue reading.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez remarks at Democratic National Convention

NOTE: During the caucuses, primaries and conventions leading up to the national convention, Sen. Sanders did receive delegates. That required his name to be put into nomination at the national convention.

Rep. Ted Yoho removed from board of Christian charity over his comments about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Washington Post logoA Christian nonprofit organization that fights world hunger asked Rep. Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) to resign from its board after he confronted a female colleague and then reportedly used a sexist expletive after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) was out of earshot.

Bread for the World announced Yoho’s resignation in a statement on Saturday, saying that his “recent actions and words as reported in the media are not reflective of the ethical standards expected of members of our Board of Directors.”

The organization asked Yoho for his resignation on Friday. In its statement, the group said the decision was taken to reaffirm “our commitment to coming alongside women and people of color, nationally and globally, as they continue to lead us to a more racially inclusive and equitable world.” Continue reading.

‘I am someone’s daughter too’: Ocasio-Cortez delivers powerful speech after sexist attack by Florida congressman

AlterNet logoRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) took to the House floor on Wednesday morning to respond to the vulgar, sexist encounter she had with Rep. Ted Yoho (FL-03) and Rep. Roger Williams (TX-25) on Monday. Ocasio-Cortez was on her way to vote, walking up the steps of the U.S. Capitol when the pair of Republican congressmen angrily confronted her. According to AOC, Yoho was angrily wagging his finger in her face and as he walked away, a reporter from The Hill overheard him exclaim “Fucking bitch.”

The reporter’s account of the encounter sparked a firestorm and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and others demanded Yoho apologize for his remarks, which seemed to be in violation of the House Ethics rules. So the first order of business on Tuesday was Yoho issuing an apology on the House floor. Except it wasn’t an apology at all. He denied using the vulgar slur and then used the fact he has a wife and daughter to deflect from his poor behavior. While many media outlets nationwide ran with “Yoho apologizes” headlines, AOC rightly pointed out that he never apologized. He never said her name. He never took responsibility for his language. He apologized for “their misunderstanding”, claiming the reporter’s misunderstood his comment. And then he had the gall to say he would not apologize for “his passion” or for “loving his God.” Nobody asked him to apologize for his religion, they asked him to apologize for being a sexist, violent jerk. And while he didn’t raise his hand to strike her, a much larger man getting in your face, angrily yelling and wagging his finger in front of your face is very much a physical aggression.

With that, AOC stood on the floor to address the controversy in one of her most passionate speeches to-date. She said she intended to let the fury die down and she would move on, but then Yoho refused to take responsibility for his actions and it upset her he brought his own wife and daughter into the controversy, using them as a shield for his behavior. She noted that she is two years younger than Ted Yoho’s youngest daughter and that “she is someone’s daughter too.” She began to choke up a bit as she pondered how her own father, who is deceased, might react to seeing the hateful treatment she is frequently on the receiving of, from just using the subway, to working as a bartender and now in the United States House of Representatives. She said she could not let this go because “this is not new. It is something women face every single day. It is a cultural. Continue reading.