House

New York Dems refute report of possible Ocasio-Cortez challenge: ‘This whole thing is crazy’

Greg Nash

New York Democrats named by a right-leaning news outlet as possible primary challengers to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) say they have no interest in running against the freshman congresswoman in 2020.

Several top state Democrats reacted on Twitter after The Daily Caller named them as potential challengers to Ocasio-Cortez, citing supposed ire raised by the rising progressive star among House colleagues due to her support for Justice Democrats, a left-leaning group that supports primary challenges against centrist members of the party.

{mosads}Among those who denied the report was New York City Councilman Jimmy Van Bremer, who tweeted Wednesday that he has “never waited for a seat & I’m not waiting for this one.”

“AOC had the courage to run & challenge. She won. I support her efforts to change how this work is done in #Queens & beyond,” he tweeted. “This whole thing is crazy. I’m kind of loving having @AOC as my Congressmember! I’m not taking her on. I’m backing her up!”

State Sen. Julia Salazar, who was also identified by The Daily Caller as a potential challenger, noted on Twitter that she does not even live in the congressional district represented by Ocasio-Cortez while mocking the news outlet as “trash.”

“The Daily Caller is trash. 1. I would never primary @AOC, even if I lived in her district (which I do not),” she tweeted. “2. I have no intentions of ever running for Congress. 3. Who on earth calls Jimmy Van Bramer ‘James?'”

“.@DailyCaller clearly doesnt have a fact checking department- ya’ll over there gossiping and we are over here doing the work @AOC #HermanasEnLaLucha #NiceTryTho,” added Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz, a third possible candidate named by The Daily Caller, Wednesday alongside a picture of the two women.

The Daily Caller’s report followed remarks made in The Hill by an unidentified House Democrat who said that they had spoken with  New York Democrats about potentially running a primary challenger against her in 2020.

“What I have recommended to the New York delegation is that you find her a primary opponent and make her a one-term congressperson,” that Democratic lawmaker told The Hill. “You’ve got numerous council people and state legislators who’ve been waiting 20 years for that seat. I’m sure they can find numerous people who want that seat in that district.”

Ocasio-Cortez herself fired back at that report on Wednesday, accusing the unidentified Democrat of holding a “broken mentality” when it came to congressional seats.

“‘You’ve got councilpeople who’ve been waiting 20 yrs for that seat,'” she tweeted, quoting the unnamed lawmaker. “That broken mentality, that public office is something you wait in line for, instead of earning through hard organizing, is exactly what voters want to change. Shows you how disconnected some folks here are.”

Tags Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

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