I’D KICK TRUMP OUT
Upstart victor says she would ‘support impeachment’
President Trump better watch his back.
The political upstart who won a stunning congressional primary victory against a powerful Queens incumbent has set her sights on the commander-in-chief.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the 28year-old former bartender and Bernie Sanders campaign organizer, said she would support impeachment for Trump if she wins in November.
“I would support impeachment,” the first-time candidate told CNN on Wednesday. “I think that, you know, we have the grounds to do it.
“Ultimately, what we need to focus on is ensuring that when people break the law . . . that we have to hold everyone accountable and that no person is above that law,” she added.
Ocasio-Cortez defeated Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-N.Y.) by a doubledigit margin in Tuesday's Democratic primary for New York's 14th District in what was considered a long-shot bid.
The insurgent Bronx native went to high school in Westchester County before graduating from Boston University with a degree in economics and international relations.
She moved back to the Bronx after her father died and worked as a bartender to help supplement the income her mother made from cleaning and driving buses.
Trump, perhaps unaware of Ocasio-Cortez's politics and workingclass background, applauded Crowley's defeat late Tuesday on Twitter, arguing maybe “he should have been nicer, and more respectful, to his President!”
"For Crowley to lose that election, that was a shocker,” Trump said Wednesday, while meeting with the president of Portugal at the White House. “He probably took it for granted. I can't say I was disappointed. I was never a big fan.”
While Crowley has been a vocal critic of the President, Ocasio-Cortez — who ran as a progressive alternative to Crowley — openly questioned Trump's business ties and noted the ongoing federal investigations into the President's campaign, saying they're grounds to impeach him now.
“I think that there are serious grounds in violations of the emoluments clause from day one,” she said. “I think that that is first and foremost one of the basic elements and violations on that and then — once again, it's hard to predict what's going to happen over the next few months. There are several investigations — one or more investigations happening — but I think from day one we had violations of the emoluments clause with the presidency.”
Ocasio-Cortez and other liberal candidates have run far to the left of moderate Democrats, calling for the abolition of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement following Trump's zero tolerance border policy of separating parents from their children, and backing a singlepayer health plan.
Despite her support for impeachment, the political neophyte said sticking to the issues was her strongest advantage in taking down Crowley.
“We have to stick to the message: What are we proposing to the American people? Not, ‘What are we fighting against?' ” Ocasio Cortez told MSNBC's “Morning Joe” on Wednesday. “We understand that we're under an antagonistic administration, but what is the vision that is going to earn and deserve the support of working-class Americans? And we need to be explicit in that vision and legislation, not just ‘better,' but what exactly is our plan?”
While Ocasio-Cortez surprised party insiders, some experts said her victory is emblematic of the current political climate and could pave the way for other surprises come November.
“I think voters are incredibly frustrated with the Democratic establishment and the status quo and they don't want elected officials who take huge checks from corporations and then don't deliver for working people,” said Monica Klein, a founding partner at Seneca Strategies, which did not work for Ocasio-Cortez. A sister group, The Broad Room, providing fund-raising training for Ocasio-Cortez's campaign.
In addition to taking down an incumbent, Ocasio-Cortez took down a machine — Crowley is the longtime boss of Queens County Democratic politics.
“This has a major implication on not just the tone of where Democrats are going, but on the institution, on the establishment that has basically stifled so many strong progressive leaders once they get into office, because they control the chessboard,” Nomiki Konst, a political strategist who backed Ocasio-Cortez, said. “Right now, what we see is a lot of it was smoke and mirrors, and they don't control the chessboard.”
She first met Ocasio Cortez about a year ago, and was struck by her willingness to take on Democratic machines in both Queens and the Bronx.
“I never discourage anybody to run for anything, ever, but I was like: that's about as machine as you can get,” Konst said.
Konst said she felt the momentum building for the candidate after a campaign video she ran online went viral, and as endorsements came in from progressive groups. But Konst said she didn't think anyone expected Ocasio-Cortez to win — and Konst herself was predicting she'd get about 30% or 40% of the vote on Primary Day. Ocasio-Cortez's strength, Konst believed, derived from her being the kind of candidate who could credibly tap into a grassroots movement.
“There are certain types of candidates that are much better candidates against people like Joe Crowley and Andrew Cuomo, and they're usually not the kinds of people who rise up through the ranks,” she said.