Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D., Mo.) on Tuesday dismissed the idea of the Democratic Party moving to the left and expressed his dissatisfaction with prominent left-wing politicians.
Fox Business host Neil Cavuto asked Cleaver what the future holds for the Democrats, and the congressman said he expects a divided government after the 2018 midterms. He then argued against Democrats following Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) and New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the self-proclaimed democratic socialist who stunned House leader Rep. Joe Crowley (D., N.Y.) in a June primary.
"I didn’t support Bernie Sanders for president. I supported someone else," he said, referring to his support for Hillary Clinton. "I think in some ways the media has pushed the young woman who was victorious in the New York congressional race against Joe Crowley to the point that she has been made out as some kind of deity."
He criticized the comparison of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency to the Islamic State (ISIS), which comedian Michelle Wolf made into a video. Cleaver said that "ridiculous" idea arose because Ocasio-Cortez and others on the far left say ICE should be abolished.
"Obviously, in the Democratic Party, you’re going to have people that would like to pull the party to the far left," he said. "That’s not where America is."
He said Republicans’ move to the right gives Democrats an opportunity to get voters in the middle of the ideological spectrum. In his view, such polarization hurts the country.
"It does enormous damage to the fabric of the nation, and neither side is going to benefit," he said. "Look, nobody in America who is thoughtful can say the American public stands together because we don't. Every day we find a little piece of something to tear us further apart."
Cleaver is not the only Democrat saying Ocasio-Cortez’s more radical positions do not reflect the party as a whole. House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D., Md.) had a conversation with her Thursday about helping Democrats in more moderate districts win races rather than pushing left-wing demands.
Some leaders, such as Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez, have said Ocasio-Cortez is the party's future. Since rocketing to fame with her June victory, Ocasio-Cortez has stumbled in her messaging and earned some reprimands from fact-checkers, but she is likely to win election easily in her deep-blue district.