Democratic Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Defeats Rep. Joe Crowley in Primary
Socialism prevailed in New York’s 14th District, another sign of Democrats moving hard left
Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY), the number 4 Democrat in the House and a name that’s popped up for Speaker, has lost the primary to newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a far-left progressive, who organized for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) during his presidential run.
Congrats on the win, @Ocasio2018. The number of votes cast tonight—in what has been the lowest turnout district in the country under Rep. Crowley—proves that working class people are hungry for a voice in politics. pic.twitter.com/iw9CG1T9pt
— New York City DSA ???? (@nycDSA) June 27, 2018
The Two Candidates
Crowley began his Congressional career in 1999 when he represented the 7th District. In 2012, he was redistricted to the 14th district, which he has represented since 2013. He served as Vice Chair of the Democratic Caucus from 2013 – 2017.
Ocasio-Cortez interned for Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) when she attended Boston University. Her father died in 2008 and she worked as a bartender and waitress after college to help her mom financially. She also worked for the nonprofit National Hispanic Institute.
Even though she organized for Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez had no name recognition, especially against a 19-year veteran. After all, Crowley raised $3.35 million. Ocasio-Cortez? $300,000. Her campaign refused all PAC money.
Ocasio-Cortez wants to abolish ICE and supports a $15 minimum wage:
100% anti-corporate PAC money. Working-class woman of color. Unabashed progressive policies: Medicare for All, Abolish ICE, Federal jobs guarantee, free public college education. https://t.co/faNQXNWPHN
— Alex Kotch ???? (@alexkotch) June 27, 2018
https://twitter.com/JStein_WaPo/status/1011786860107059201
If you were wondering Ocasio-Cortez's views on Israel —> https://t.co/Stywra1uxD
— Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) June 27, 2018
CNN reported:
Ocasio-Cortez has also been at the front lines — literally so, last weekend, when she traveled to join protests at an ICE detention center in Texas — of the progressive backlash against the Trump administration’s border and immigration policies. Ocasio-Cortez has been a vocal proponent of the push to abolish the agency, an issue she ties back to her district’s diverse population.
“We have families and communities here (in the 14th District) from Ecuador and Colombia, Bangladesh, Korea, Pakistan, and I see them every day, many of them are very scared about what’s going on,” she said. “With my campaign, in terms of immigration, we’re trying to say, ‘Hey, we’ve got your back.'”
Crowley also targeted ICE, calling it “fascist,” but stopping short of demanding its elimination. During a televised debate with Ocasio-Cortez less than two weeks before the primary, Crowley argued that “simply abolishing the agency doesn’t take it out of the hands of (Attorney General) Jeff Sessions or this president.”
The child detention camps are here – I confronted the border officers myself.
Using their names, I told them exactly what they are responsible for.
One of them made eye contact with me.
I spoke directly to him.
I saw his sense of guilt.
We can dismantle this.#AbolishICE pic.twitter.com/QLyc9MAnkt— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) June 24, 2018
Reactions on Primary Night
The New York Daily News reported:
“It feels great,” she said after the race had been called for her. “It’s crazy. It means we need to expand our advocacy for working-class Americans and people of color.”
On hand at her victory party was Cynthia Nixon — who is hoping to pull off a similar upset against Gov. Cuomo in the Democratic gubernatorial primary in September.
“She ran an amazing campaign. She really spoke to her community,” Nixon said. “If you give them the chance, they will embrace a female leader who really speaks to them. If you give them chance, they will buck the status quo. They will elect a female leader who will really speak to them.”
The 14th District of New York is a relatively safe Democrat seat so more than likely Ocasio-Cortez will win the election in November. From CNN:
Ocasio-Cortez, an activist and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won over voters in the minority-majority district with a ruthlessly efficient grassroots bid, even as Crowley — the fourth-ranked Democrat in the House — outraised her by a 10-to-1 margin.
This was the first time in 14 years a Democrat has attempted unseat Crowley, who chairs the Queens County Democrats. His defeat marks a potential sea change in party politics — a result with implications for Democrats nationwide that would recall, as optimistic progressives routinely noted during the campaign, former GOP Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s loss to the insurgent, tea party-backed Dave Brat in June 2014.
Crowley took his loss in stride and said he will support her and other Democrats this November:
I want to congratulate @Ocasio2018. I look forward to supporting her and all Democrats this November. The Trump administration is a threat to everything we stand for here in Queens and the Bronx, and if we don’t win back the House this November, we will lose the nation we love.
— Joe Crowley (@JoeCrowleyNY) June 27, 2018
It has been the honor of a lifetime to represent Queens and the Bronx. I am proud of the race we ran and, more importantly, proud of all of the work we’ve done to advance this community.
— Joe Crowley (@JoeCrowleyNY) June 27, 2018
SO! Is House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) smiling or cringing? Will Ocasio-Cortez’s victory give more people the courage to speak out against Pelosi? I know many have said they wouldn’t like her to become Speaker if the Democrats retake the House, but who knows if they’ll change their mind if that happens.
Fox News reported her statement:
In a statement, Pelosi described Crowley as “an unwavering champion for America’s working families for almost two decades” who “brought principled, unifying and forward-looking leadership to the historic challenges of the Trump Administration” as the Democratic caucus chair.
“I salute Chairman Crowley for a formidable legacy of achievement for the people of New York,” Pelosi concluded. “I congratulate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on her victory.”
To get the crowd to quiet down at the @Ocasio2018 victory party, the speaker is yelling mic check — crowd yelling back mic check.
For you kids, this is from Occupy.
Occupy is coming to Congress.
— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) June 27, 2018
[Featured image via Facebook and Wikimedia Commons]
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Comments
Socialism! I appreciate honest Democrats! That is the only direction that party has open to it. An ignorant ideology, sold by the ignorant to the ignorant indolent masses.
The only platform socialists can run on is taking what you have, and worked and saved all your life for, and handing it over to somebody else more deserving.
‘I am and therefore I deserve all that you have!”
Pelosi must be delighted. If the Democrats take back the House, there’s now one less threat to her Speaker seat.
If.
i would say just the opposite – if communistarians can win in a few seats, then they have the ‘voice of the people’!
maybe they would select maxine the mental midget as speaker for a day, why limit it just to 1 womyn after all fair is fair!
In 2004, or even 2006, after a decade and a half of Democrats trying to “triangulate” to the center, who thought a proto-communist from Chicago could win the White House?
There’s nothing “proto” about this one. This is a very treacherous development.
“Obama: The Sequel” — The making of the second American socialist is underway. Ocasio-Cortez with her young, clean look and sharp creases leads the press coverage of the 2018 primary season. All hail Alexandria the First.
and she is an avowed anti israel.
the woke jews will/are/did flock to her.
the geriatric bolshoviks ditto.
for these JINOs, self preservation has somehow been lost – just as europe is.
bye bye europe, hello sharia (coming to a town near you)
Rep. Ellison erupts over Farrakhan question
https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2018/06/26/trump-obama-louis-farrakhan-keith-ellison-travel-ban-lead-sot-vpx.cnn
I am not sure how you can support both open borders and a $15/hr minimum wage, it does not make fiscal sense. One could target an unofficial $15/hr minimum wage by not flooding the labor market with unfair competition for those jobs. Surely anyone who observes unchecked illegal (and in some cases, legal) immigration in the US and Europe must see the cause/effect relationship.
If they understood either economics or incentives, they would not be socialists.
I believe I read that she was an econ major at BU… must have slept through most of her classes.
Then again, BU Law just hired a SJW to be the new dean.
I don’t think college was very effective with this one. She was still waiting tables and serving drinks “after college”. I assume that means she didn’t even graduate?
I’m not surprised. I had a Marxist grad student for Econ 101 way back in 1960.
I read somewhere if you ever need to hide your gun because democrats want to take it from you, cut out a hole in a book on economics and hide it there.
She also supports open borders and Medicare for all! And free college for all! And a guaranteed federal government job for all!
What she doesn’t do is tell her voters where she will plant the orchards of money trees that will be needed to pay for all the gimme-that programs of free stuff she promises to all her voters, as well as to all those new “migrant” voters that she wants to have the right to cross our border unhindered.
Cynthia Nixon says: “They will elect a female leader who will really speak to them.” LOL. They would elect a transgender chimpanzee if it promised them all the free stuff that this chick did.
Isn’t it fun to confiscate and spend other peoples hard earned money?
works only 1 time, after da muny gawn t’aint any moh….
Money walks!
NYC neighborhoods are constantly changing. The NY14th could not identify with a Crowley, but could with an Ocasio-Cortez. Her politics is secondary, for now. Not a surprise. Welcome to NYC
I read that the district is now 80% “minority/majority” and 20% White. So the old white guy lost to the minority young female, I think it probable that her politics didn’t play as large a role in the near blowout win as did her Latina status.
One of them made eye contact with me.
I spoke directly to him.
I saw his sense of guilt
Maybe she can’t tell the difference between a look of guilt, and the look of someone who’s being annoyed.
Let me translate that from Socialist.
I went to a fence and yelled at the man on the other side. He did not immediately do what I wanted, so he is guilty and deserves to be punished.
“While looking fabulous…in my skinny leg white jeans” !!!
Joe Crowley has a 21% constitutional voting record,
https://www.thenewamerican.com/freedom-index
typical of downstate NY Members of Congress.
So his loss is no big deal; he was never a friend of the Constitution to begin with. Her win does show the emerging Latin vote, and that’s not a good sign as their thinking aligns with a government-is-good-&-a-bigger-government-is-even-better attitude.
Last I checked 21% is better than 0% which is where the district is headed with her as rep.
Maybe so, maybe no. If she wants any committee assignments, she’ll vote the way the leadership tells her to, just like all of the rest of them.
Another community organizer on the rise.
At least she us up front about how far left her views are. No “evolving” necessary.
Whoa!
Look!
Look!
I can see it from here!
Right around the corner, do you see it?
UTOPIA!
Guy: Hi…is this the door to UTOPIA ?
Doorman: Yep…
Guy: Ahh….can I get in, Please?
Doorman: There’s a cover charge…
Guy: How much ?
Doorman: Everything ya got….
The next civil war will not be for unity. The normal people will kick out the socialists. Let them have California and New York. They can cannibalize themselves.
I do not think they will be given any land. Once the retaliation from normal people begins, it will be a Pinochet solution. It will not be pretty.
I have good news and bad news. The good news is that you will get 71% of the planet. The bad news is that it is all salt water.
“Socialism Will Win” she says.
There will be a veritable bloodbath in the streets of America before that happens.
As Ocasio-Cortez says “Welcome to Valenzuela”.
As Ocasio-Cortez says “Welcome to Venezuela”.
NY 14 encompasses part of the Bronx and Part of Queens. Is it any wonder that the Democrat voters in these areas would vote for an avowed socialist who is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America?
There’s a better than even chance that most of her supporters didn’t look past her last name.
Bingo!
she fits in with the Mayor
She needs to start boning up so she can lead her ilk:
Mass killings under communist regimes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_killings_under_communist_regimes
I want it and I want it today.
College I don’t have to pay for
Income I don’t work for.
Free Health care.
Affordable Homes (Since I don’t work or earn anything this means free as well)
But most of all I want that economy of peace.
You know that economy of Venezuela.
When I was in middle school or back then Junior High we were required to take a comparison civics class that outlined the differences in Socialism(back then it was called by its real name COMMUNISM).
And you forgot: a Che Guevera-like firing squad for anyone who disagrees.
The Truth About Che Guevara:
“…He helped free Cubans from the repressive Batista regime, only to enslave them in a totalitarian police state worst than the last. He was Fidel Castro’s chief executioner, a mass-murderer who in theory could have commanded any number of Latin American death squads, from Peru’s Shining Path on the political left to Guatemala’s White Hand on the right.”
To hell with this crazy 28-year-old lunatic.
Let’s not forget the role of the Crying Boehners in allowing the our educational systems to fall under complete fascist control, and thus churn out the likes of this lunatic Cortez.
You would want to believe that in order to run as a Democrat, you would have to be a Democrat.
Well, I guess Socialist is just one rung up the ladder from there.
Thank goodness it is only a Primary, but in the Middle of New York… it still isn’t encouraging.
This will, if nothing else, be very interesting.
It’s NYC. The primary is the election. The Rs and/or the Cs may put someone up against her just for the form of things, but the result is predetermined. There is simply no way that district, or any district in most of NYC, will return anyone but the Democrat. They could nominate Fidel Castro and get the same result.
Just for any of you who think she’s hot. Five years, max. She’ll have the mustache and 100 extra pounds.
I wonder if this idiot realizes that no one is trying to break into Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Columbia, Venezuela, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, Mexico, Cuba, etc etc. We live in the most dynamic country in the world and she wants to change it! Does that sound like someone else we all know? obama had the same disgust for America as this nitwit and wanted to “Fundamentally” change it. Why don’t they go to some siht hole and change it instead?
For that matter, even at the height of apartheid black people were trying to break into South Africa, not out.
When do I get my free Cortez phone, college diploma and guaranteed job that I won’t have to work at?