Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., has issued a dire warning to her party about the chaos that could ensue if they succeed in pushing President Joe Biden off the ticket. And she criticized Democrats who’ve given off-the-record quotes that suggest the party has resigned itself to a second Trump term.
In an Instagram Live video on Thursday, Ocasio-Cortez warned liberals that a brokered convention could lead to chaos, in part because she says some of the Democratic “elites” who want Biden out also don’t want Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee in his place.
“If you think that is going to be an easy transition, I’m here to tell you that a huge amount of the donor class and these elites who are pushing for the president not to be the nominee also do not want to see the VP be the nominee,” she said.
Ocasio-Cortez claimed none of the people she’s spoken with who are calling on Biden to drop out — including lawmakers and legal experts — have articulated a plan to swap out the nominee without minimizing the serious legal and procedural challenges that are likely to ensue.
Ocasio-Cortez also highlighted the racial, ethnic and class divisions that appear to have formed between the majority of those pining to blow up the ticket — led mostly by white Democrats and media pundits — and those elected officials who feel they and their constituents have too much at stake to upend the process at this point and so are willing to do the work to re-elect Biden-Harris. She alluded to this cultural divide in her video when she spoke out against anonymous sources expressing a sense of fatalism on behalf of Democrats about what might happen if Biden remains on the ticket:
What I will say is what upsets me is [Democrats] saying we will lose. For me, to a certain extent, I don’t care what name is on there. We are not losing. I don’t know about you, but my community does not have the option to lose. My community does not have the luxury of accepting loss in July of an election year. My people are the first ones deported. They’re the first ones put in Rikers. They’re the first ones whose families are killed by war.
Even before today’s news of Biden stepping down, I feel the public party infighting about him/trump/ect instead of getting anything of substance into the news stream is an indication the current democratic party is over. As in effectively not a party.
Thus to add to AOC’s comment: A very bad time for this as our system has two semi stable states… 2 party rule… Or one party rule. (Sure outside groups/parties can and do help mold the main parties to their actual policy goals, but and if are popular enough get merged in or replace a main party)
This means can a new party grow out of the ashes of current one and actually organize in time for the election. (Obviously this “new” party gets to use the name/infrastructure of the one I’m calling over so may just look from the outside a shuffle of administration if fast… And it needs to be fast)
And while I was happy to vote for Biden, and now presumably Harris, the lack of strength I see from Democrats on policy very much concerns me. (Not even it needs to be as far left as many on here seem to want it but it must be functional… So those more left can debate actual policy… Not that issues even exist… Or ignoring it all together)
One sliver of hope is this can be used to pivot the talking points back on track… But given the media climate I am not hopeful.
The Democrats seem to be in better shape than the Republicans. The only thing that’s keeping their party together is Trump. Democrats have several candidates they could run. Republicans have only one. They’ve become the cult of Trump.
Not sure I agree republicans are worse off (as much as I might wish they were.)
But hopefully Kamala Harris picks a good running mate and with them gives a proper voice and direction to the party. (My concers aside I want to see the government work for the best interests of the people at the end of the day… And not for specific groups of people, or corporate interests. (And this includes calling out business owners when they put their business of any size over the needs of the people and community)