Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) rejected the “extremist” label this week, arguing that she and right-wing extremists weren’t equivalent.
Speaking to CNN’s Chris Wallace, Ocasio-Cortez acknowledged lawmakers are anxious for those on “the fringes” of either side of the aisle to embrace more central ideologies. But the New York liberal warned against creating false equivalencies.
She explained that while she was often labeled “extreme,” she objected to that label, noting that she wouldn’t categorize herself as “extreme in the way that Marjorie Taylor Greene on the Republican side is extreme.”
Ocasio-Cortez then explained that she would her support for policies like universal health care isn’t equivalent to those on the right supporting separating undocumented families at the Southern border.
Ocasio-Cortez was first elected to represent New York’s 14th District in 2018 and has since become known for her brand of progressivism and expertise in self-promotion on social media.
But, during the interview with Wallace, she relayed that the popularity came at a cost, explaining that she frequently receives violent threats, including threats of death.
She shared with Wallace her feelings that her life has been “in danger” since she won the 2018 primary, elaborating that the sense of danger only heightened in 2019 when she joined Congress.
Greene — who like Ocasio-Cortez has been catapulted onto the national stage because of her brand of politics — has also had her life threatened.
Over the summer, her home was swatted after an anonymous caller phoned the police under the guise violence was occurring at the lawmaker’s Georgia home.
Greene speculated she had been targeted by leftists, telling Stephen Bannon, “they are trying to have me murdered.”
