One can guess that libertarians oppose the anti-market economics of Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez. It’s odd, to me, though, how much time conservatives have spent complaining, critiquing, and analyzing that democratic socialist from New York.
In those conservative critiques, however, one sees more than an economic or foreign policy disagreement: some of these conservatives are upset that she’s upset with Trump, and are themselves upset with the very idea that Ocasio-Cortez might be upset about anything.
In her opposition to Trump, in her revulsion to his lumpen bigotry, Ocasio-Cortez is, however, both right and sympathetic.
Consider this exchange between conservative Peggy Noonan and Ocasio-Cortez about how Noonan thinks Ocasio-Cortez should have behaved at the State of the Union address last night:
And good natured with the white jackets, who I see some on twitter are calling the straight jackets. AOC had a rare bad night, looking not spirited, warm and original as usual but sullen, teenaged and at a loss.
Why should I be “spirited and warm” for this embarrassment of a #SOTU?
Tonight was an unsettling night for our country. The president failed to offer any plan, any vision at all, for our future.
We’re flying without a pilot. And I‘m not here to comfort anyone about that fact.
All considered, Ocasio-Cortez is restrained, almost mild, in her reply.
She’s also on solid ground: Ocasio-Cortez owes no one a smile, least of all Noonan, an aged conservative at a Murdoch publication who’s able to live comfortably while Trump inflicts injuries on countless common people.
While I would not (and could not) speak for @AOC, for myself I will say that there will be smiling enough when both Trump and those such as Noonan find themselves in the political outer darkness they so deserve.
AOC is the latest misogynistic hate object du jour for the rabid right. Ive spent the last couple of weeks in various over-55 walled compounds in the American SW and Baja, MX. Her name comes up more than Nancy Pelosi, when the MAGA-hat crowd starts to fulminate. Nothing worse than an uppity minority young woman, in their eyes. She has managed, in just one month, to get them all frothing. I asked one guy how he could hate someone that he can’t even remember the full name of so much. His sputtered reply is that she is a gawdam socialist, and he didn’t even want to know her full name.
They’ve picked a new demon, it seems, with Hillary Clinton no longer sufficiently irritating them.
She is some of the best news Cult45 can hope for. She is a hard-left, young, minority woman who has been ULTRA-AMPLIFIED by main stream media. Only 10-15% of funding for her campaign came from within her district and much from outside of NY. The infancy of her voting record is questionable as well. Trying to cause chaos in the Speaker/ Leadership selection… another amplified divisive character (chaos-agent) in the Democratic Party (i.e.- Bernie Sanders- fails to vote against Russian sanctions repeatedly, Tulsi Gabbard- supported by David Duke).
Along with Independent Dem-vote-splitters like Jill Stein (I wonder what happened to her recount money) and now Howard Schultz. Maybe AOC is an unwitting tool, or maybe she is a witting tool. We’ll see what her voting record bears out. So far, I believe there’s more than meets the eye with her.
Nothing gets the insulated, Fox-watching populace invigorated (and Independents/ undecideds!) to vote AGAINST DEMOCRATS like amplifying these outliers… because, in their minds, now ALL Dems believe in abolishing ICE and taxing rich folks 70% (wrong, of course)… Mission accomplished, AOC? Maybe not, but maybe.
There’s a list of candidates of whom I (and other genuine libertarians) would obviously have objections: Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders, Stein, and now Tulsi Gabbard.
The political futures of Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez are uncertain, but fortunately America is not likely to hear much of Gabbard, and should hear of Stein only if she’s indicted.
Of self-professed centrist Howard Shultz we are likely to hear more, as he can buy his own team and there are always consultants looking for a meal ticket. How anyone could think of him as a better alternative to Trump than a nominated Democrat truly puzzles – it’s a large & diverse coalition that’s needed against Trump, and only the Democratic candidate will have one behind him or her.
I’ve not a must-have candidate of my own for 2020, and would take the nominated Democrat over Trump in any event.
As for Peggy Noonan, and anyone on the opinion side at the Wall Street Journal, well, their objections to AOC are uncompelling. There is a solid case against many of Ocasio-Cortez’s policies, but that case can — and should — come from reasonable Democrats and independents (libertarian, unaffiliated, etc.).
I am confident, however, the Democratic Party will — seeing properly the danger of America’s situation — choose wisely.