The end of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's revolution

[brooklynite]

National Journal

Joe Biden’s decisive drubbing of Bernie Sanders in the presidential primary squelched the socialist stirrings that had been percolating within the Democratic Party. It’s probably no coincidence, then, that three of Congress’s most far-left members, all aligned with Sanders, are facing credible challenges of their own in upcoming House primaries.

Three of the four freshmen members of the left-wing "Squad" that President Trump calls “AOC+3”—Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota—have drawn opponents who have made the case that they’re too extreme for the districts they represent. Tlaib is at risk at losing her seat to an experienced African-American official in her Detroit-area district. And while Ocasio-Cortez and Omar are favored to prevail, they will face their first serious test over the popularity of their progressive messages in deep-blue districts.

The unusual and unpredictable turnout patterns for upcoming summer primaries taking place during a pandemic will also add some uncertainty to these races. New York Democratic officials have been working to cancel the presidential primary for their June 23 elections, a decision overruled by a federal judge and currently under appeal. Without a presidential race driving turnout and with the coronavirus keeping many voters home, tiny turnout for state and local primaries raises the likelihood of unpredictable outcomes. Indeed, the low turnout in the 2018 New York primary was a major factor in Ocasio-Cortez’s upset of longtime Rep. Joseph Crowley.

Ocasio-Cortez’s primary against former CNBC anchor Michelle Caruso-Cabrera hasn’t drawn a lot of attention, but it’s worth watching closely. The congresswoman’s district, which spans Queens and the Bronx, has been one of the hardest-hit areas in the country from the pandemic. But Ocasio-Cortez was the only House Democrat to vote against the coronavirus-relief bill, a lonely and unpopular position on Capitol Hill. She told The New York Times that, after the vote, she felt more alienated in Congress than ever before and was facing a personal existential crisis.

[DetlefK]

1. Don't blame Biden or the DNC. The only one to blame is the broken electoral system of the US.

Winner-take-all. If you veer away from your own party, you split the vote and harm both your own cause and your allies. Because winner-take-all.

If the US had an electoral system that actually allowed for more than two parties to exist, Republicans and Democrats would naturally break up into two or three smaller parties each, allowing for more choice at the ballot-box and disincentivizing partisanship, because now no party would be able to get 51+% of votes, because the voters have too many parties to choose from.

[brooklynite]

3. That wouldn't be applicable here...

All of the members of the Squad are in absolutely safe Democratic seats. Their success came in the Primary Elections (nb- none of the multi-party Countries you’re probably thinking of allow local voters to select Party candidates).

[Demsrule86]

4. Multiple parties led to minority rule.

[Hortensis]

14. "Broken" in that ONLY 5% of the voters in Ocasio-Cortez's district

bothered to vote in this special election. Presumably the others thought their old, party-powerhouse congressman would win without their bothering to vote one way or the other. The figure for registered Democrats who voted was something like 11%. These figures were from Roll Call right after the election.

Most presumably woke up to their Wednesday Morning Surprise wondering who Ocasio-Cortez was. She's extremely heavily funded from outside the district, however, and it's believed outspending her opponents a number of times over will hold her seat this election.

Big money in politics doing its thing.

[betsuni]

20. +1

[hlthe2b]

5. AOC's Dem opponent in primary: used to live in Trump hotel & called for privatising Medicare and SS

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/michelle-caruso-cabrera-aoc-democratic-primary-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-bronx-nyc-a9489086.html

I'm neutral on AOC and this race, but I find it fascinating who is backing the opposition and what they stand for.

[Budi]

6. I don't find either of them appealing, but I'm not voting in their district

There are some stark & rather mature/ immature differences between the two.

With no skin in the game, I'm not beholding to one or the other.
We can dig into a she said/she said back & forth & for the cringy whataboutisms on Cabrera, there's one waiting to be levelled at Ocasio Cortez as well.

Their District is in crises.
Cabrera is calling for a debate with Cortez pointing out her confusing lone NO VOTE to aid her District.

Meanwhile, Cortez hits the news with her thanks for the warm fuzzies she received on social media's Animal Crossing.

Wtf ever.

[lunasun]

12. 1%s just can't help it. She is what they want and they will even go to the National Journal to

convince centrist others .
From your link
Ms Caruso-Cabrera — who formerly described herself as a “Whole Foods Republican” — is challenging Ms Ocasio-Cortez from the right as a business-friendly centrist.

[Budi]

18. National Journal isn't a biased nor extreme sourced publication.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/mediabiasfactcheck.com/national-journal/%3famp


They are rated high for 'least bias' & factual reporting".

Ok. They're not Greenwald or The Intercept but their rating for non-bias is at least far higher than either of those 2.

Sorry.

[zak247]

7. Radicals often help conservatives get elected

Bernie Sanders was always a cause guy, not a real candidate who wanted to or expected to win.

If he did, he would have never been so radical at this time. Maybe when the economy was down in 2008, he could have won but not when the same country just voted in a right-wing fool and lunatic conman like Trump.

These progressives are very clueless. They have become like religious fanatics not politically astute people.

Though AOC has supposed to be changing. I had tweeted her during the anti-Amazon in NYC period that she needed to be mindful of the actual lives of poor people and how radicals end up (Ralph Nadar, Jill Stein types) often helping to elect conservatives who do things like cut food stamps, Obamacare and many other anti-poor and middle-class issues.

[Budi]

8. Agree completely.

Anti-Amazon jobs for the city, the lone NO VOTE for aid to their own District , the absence of availibility to constituents..

These are the exact decisions that open the door just enough for the waiting Republicans to put up a heavy-hitter challenger. Talking pts in hand already prepared.

Thanks for nothing.

[pampango]

9. I wonder why the RW National Journal would hope that the left wing 'squad' would be defeated?

JK. The far-right would love to see the far-left defeated.

[BComplex]

10. That's what I was thinking. I'm going to donate to all three of those campaigns.

They've been a very welcome voice for many of us liberals.

[brooklynite]

13. Actually, none of them probably need your money...

...they've all got plenty.

[brooklynite]

11. What's your basis for claiming it's RW?

(Allsides.com rates then as "Centrist&quot

And was there something factually wrong about the article?

[Budi]

19. National Journal is not RW. What's your source?

[Budi]

15. MediaFactCheck- "National Journal Least Biased source and high for factual reporting.

When we last reviewed National Journal in 2016, we determined they were a least biased source and high for factual reporting. We do not have enough evidence to change the rating and therefore this is a low confidence review.

A factual search reveals they have not failed a fact check.

Overall, we rate National Journal Least Biased based on third party assessment. We also rate them High for factual reporting. (D. Van Zandt 7/9/2016) Updated (2/9/2020)


https://www.google.com/amp/s/mediabiasfactcheck.com/national-journal/%3famp

No bias nor nefarious political sourcing detected with National Journal



(Now where's that tiny violin emoji)

[Chemisse]

16. However it turns out for them, it's a lesson in politics that is badly needed.

Getting into office doesn't mean you go off on your own agenda, come hell or high water, with the single-mindedness of a zealot. It involves representing your constituents (remember them?) and even making compromises that may chafe against your ideals.

[Budi]

17. Thank you.

👍