AOC tells reporter that “we can likely push Vice President Biden in a more progressive direction across policy issues.”
From WWW.THEBLAZE.COM
Democratic socialist and "squad" member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N. Y.) believes the far left of the Democratic Party will be able to push former Vice President Joe Biden to enact some of their preferred polices, should the Democrats win the presidency.
Ocasio-Cortez, who supported Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in the Democratic primary, told JustTheNews reporter Nick Ballasy she agrees with Sanders' reported concerns that Joe Biden is not progressive enough for the modern left.
"Of course I do," Ocasio-Cortez said. "We're different people, and clearly I, in the primary, one of the reasons why I was supportive of Sen. Sanders was because of how progressive his stances are, but, you know, the primaries are over, and right now what is most important is to make sure that we ensure a Democratic victory in November and that we continue to push Vice President Biden on issues from marijuana to climate change to foreign policy."
Ocasio-Cortez: 'We can likely push' Biden 'in a more progressive direction' if he's elected
Sanders is reported to have recently expressed doubts to Biden's associates that the Democratic presidential nominee is doing enough to excite progressives and turn them out to vote. In private conversations, he reportedly said Biden is at "serious risk" of losing the election to President Trump by alienating progressives with his centrist positions.
Sanders has denied making these comments, but Ocasio-Cortez agrees Biden should move "in a more progressive direction."
"I think, overall, we can likely push Vice President Biden in a more progressive direction across policy issues," she said. "I think foreign policy is an enormous area where we can improve; immigration is another one. There are some areas where we just fundamentally disagree, but that's OK. I think it's important to acknowledge that we can have, in some cases, very large disagreements — it doesn't mean that we're trying to undermine the party or undermine each other. It means that we're trying to do what's best for people in the country.
"We'll see what progress that we're able to make on issues like immigration and criminal justice reform," she added.
Ocasio-Cortez cited the "full legalization" of marijuana as an example of a policy she feels a possible Biden administration might move left on.
"One perfect example is that I believe in the legalization of marijuana, not just decriminalization, but full legalization, regulation, et cetera," she said. "But, you know, we will hash those out. Our main priority is to make sure that the ... (Read more)
Submitted 1309 days ago
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