A reporter appeared to hit a raw nerve when she asked former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) whether radical Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is “directing” the Democrats in their negotiations with Republicans on the government shutdown.
Pelosi lashed out at the reporter on Wednesday after being pressed on whether Republicans should take Ocasio-Cortez seriously as a negotiating partner in the shutdown battle.
The reporter was responding to rumours that AOC is behind the Democrats’ disastrous handling of the negotiations.
“There was a thought from the Republicans that AOC is directing this, and she said that senators are welcome to go to her office directly. Is she driving that?” the reporter asked.
The question appeared to immediately trigger Pelosi, who was visibly angered by the notion.
“Why are you saying such a ridiculous thing?” Pelosi shot back.
The question followed Ocasio-Cortez’s Tuesday night appearance on MSNBC.
During the interview, the progressive lawmaker told Republicans:
“My office is open, and you are free to walk in and negotiate with me directly.”
Pelosi dismissed the notion that Ocasio-Cortez had any meaningful role in the talks.
She insisted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) is the one managing the Democratic Party’s negotiations.
“She’s wonderful, she’s a real team player, and the rest of that,” Pelosi said.
“You started by saying Republicans say that she’s directing this.
“She is not, Hakeem Jeffries is, and this takes a lot of experience, a lot of unity from the caucus in terms of the point of view, and that’s what this is.”
Pelosi did credit Ocasio-Cortez as an “articulate spokesperson for her point of view.”
However, she doubled down that it was Jeffries, not AOC, who is leading the caucus.
WATCH:
The exchange marked the latest example of Pelosi publicly downplaying Ocasio-Cortez’s influence.
The former speaker has repeatedly drawn lines between Democrat leadership and the party’s progressive wing.
In 2019, amid a dispute over a border funding bill that Ocasio-Cortez opposed, Pelosi told The New York Times:
“All these people have their public whatever and their Twitter world, but they didn’t have any following.
“They’re four people, and that’s how many votes they got.”
More recently, Pelosi was reported to have worked behind the scenes to block Ocasio-Cortez’s bid to become the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee.
According to Punchbowl News, Pelosi was “actively working to tank” AOC’s push by lobbying fellow Democrats on behalf of her opponent, the late Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA).
Ocasio-Cortez ultimately lost the caucus vote 131 to 84.
Pelosi’s sharp dismissal this week underscores the continued tension between the Democrat establishment and its most prominent progressive voices.
Those divisions are now spilling into the spotlight as the shutdown fight drags on.
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