ADVERTISEMENT

Ocasio-Cortez: Democratic Party 'Too Big of a Tent'

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez / Getty Images
January 6, 2020

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) said in an interview released Monday that the Democratic Party "can be too big of a tent" and that Joe Biden did not belong in her party.

The freshman congresswoman told New York magazine that the Congressional Progressive Caucus's membership standards are far too lax.

"They let anybody who the cat dragged in call themselves a progressive. There's no standard," Ocasio-Cortez said, adding that the same goes for the Democratic Party. "Democrats can be too big of a tent."

The democratic socialist also discussed "with a groan" the prospect of former vice president Joe Biden winning the 2020 election. She indicated that she'd prefer not to share a tent with her party's presidential frontrunner, saying that "in any other country, Joe Biden and I would not be in the same party, but in America, we are."

Ocasio-Cortez has a history of criticizing Democrats more moderate than herself. In March, she called fellow House Democrats racist for voting to expand U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's powers. She also criticized members who were hesitant to support the impeachment of President Donald Trump, saying that they should expect pressure from the left.