New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Green New Deal” is meant to be a litmus test for 2020 candidates, but it may turn into a boon for Republicans.
The Green New Deal, which calls for an unprecedented expansion of government power to fight global warming, allows Republicans to wage war against “socialism” that’s backed by Democratic presidential contenders.
“Every Republican in the country should get on their hands and knees and thank Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,” Andy Surabian, a former White House official, told Axios.
Wall Street Journal columnist Kimberley Strassel quipped that Ocasio-Cortez was the GOP’s “secret weapon for 2020.” All Republicans have to do is “sit back” and watch the freshman Democrat “exist.”
“The Democrats seem oblivious to its power. And the GOP needn’t lift a finger for it to work,” Strassel wrote in a Thursday night column.
Axios reporter Jonathan Swan told Fox News Thursday that “it’s like Christmas and Hanukkah and every other holiday has arrived” for President Donald Trump’s team.
“I’ve never seen them so joyful and full of glee,” Swan said. “They’re gonna elevate this and talk about it til the cows come home.”
Ocasio-Cortez also bungled the Green New Deal’s rollout, including calls to eliminate “farty cows,” air travel and hand out welfare to those “unwilling to work,” which fueled Republican criticisms of the proposal.
“Democrat socialists made clear today that they want to use climate change as a means to abolish capitalism and implement massive taxation, expropriation, and government control,” Arizona GOP Rep. Paul Gosar said of the Green New Deal.
Wyoming GOP Sen. John Barrasso called it a “socialist manifesto,” and Utah GOP Rep. Rob Bishop called it a “socialist super package” because of the resolution’s veering off into calls for universal health care, government-guaranteed jobs and “social justice.”
“I hope I wake up out of this twilight zone,” Bishop said.
Ocasio-Cortez released her highly anticipated Green New Deal resolution Thursday with more than 60 cosponsors, including presidential candidate Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard.
A Senate companion bill is cosponsored by 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls, including Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California.
Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described democratic socialist, is seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party.
However, Democrats are far from united on this. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dismissed the Green New Deal as a mere “suggestion,” not a centerpiece of her party’s agenda.
“It will be one of several or maybe many suggestions that we receive,” Pelosi toldPolitico Wednesday. “The green dream or whatever they call it, nobody knows what it is, but they’re for it, right?”
Ocasio-Cortez embraced Pelosi’s “green dream” comment.
“I echo President Trump’s statement from the State of the Union Address: ‘America will never be a socialist country,’” Arizona GOP Rep. Andy Biggs said in a statement addressed to Democrats.
Read more at Daily Caller
ET, go home.
The support of the Green New Deal and other climate change legislation should be a boom to Republicans. Historically this has not happened. The main problem is thinking that “All Republicans have to do is “sit back” and watch the freshman Democrat “exist.” The problem is the main stream media avidity censors out all information that puts leftist candidates in a bad light. This includes the cost of their programs to the American public. As such, people vote for Democrats who would pursue policies that the voters would strongly oppose. Rather than “sit back” Republicans need to strongly advertize what the impact of the policies of the Democrats would be. An excellent example is how renewable energy added a thousand dollars to the average home power bill in Georgetown Texas.
The long term goal of Green New Deal to eliminate air travel hasn’t appeared in this web site (at least that I have seen). Since planes must run on fossil fuels, the goal is to put them out of business. The plan is to eliminate the need for air travel by building an extensive network of high speed light rail. Like the other aspects of the Green New Deal, this can not work. The top speed of such as system is 220 mph but the typical speed is 140. In contrast the typical speed of a commercial airplane is 550 mph. In addition, the tracks for true high speed rail cost $82 million per mile. The people who dreamed up the Green New Deal haven’t a clue about the real world.
Oh come one David, have some faith. AOC says we can get rid of airplanes and just build railways across the oceans. What could possibly be wrong with that?
Germany failed, painfully, to achieve Merkel’s dream. How would AO-C’S green new deal differ from Germany’s? Her plan is a nightmare, not a dream.
Everyone knows that renewables need traditional back-up generators, using fossil fuels and uranium. All the viable hydro dams have been built. Would AO-C deliver pedal – powered generators to everyone? At their expense?
Dumbocreeps are simply batshht crazy .. completely off the rails stupid.
The Green Deal is a late Christmas present to the Republicans . A gift that will keep giving . Ocasio -Cortez until recently was a bar tender so who actually wrote the Green Deal ?
Hillary grossly miscalculated by threatening coal workers at the bequest of the socialist loons and grant seeking con men who have now taken over the Democrat Party .
Instead of learning from that cluster fuck decision they are doubling down .
Now lets see what happens when you threaten the entire airline industry
, oil and gas industry and promise to copy the Venezuela economic debacle .
The hard left socialist have very short memories and their party is stupid enough to pull another Seth Rich when it suits them .
Of course immediately behind Cortez , should she be shut down is “American Indian ‘ Elizabeth Warren or Booker of wash room fame .
Who ever thought the Hillary / Bill self dealer show would look so
normal . Maybe that’s the plan . Let the kooks run wild till the polling numbers show 25 % then let the Clinton’s ride in with saddle bags of Steyer cash to rescue the implosion of the democrats .
The USA political system is becoming a circular firing squad .
What a waste .
“Ocasio -Cortez until recently was a bar tender so who actually wrote the Green Deal ?” My understanding is that the Green New Deal is the political plat form of the US Green Party. Ocasio –Cortez is just the one that imported the package into Congress.
When will the MSM decide to cut them loose? How rad can they go and keep a straight face without losing face?
Stick a camera in Bill Nye’s goofy mug and ask him to endorse the green new deal. His career will flash before his eyes. Where’s Michael Moore these days? Radio silence.
Force everyone of the Lefty megaphones to declare . They’re waiting for someone else to give the Little Green Woman the truth.
There is no Imminent Climate Catastrophe, Virginia.
Thanks for clearing that up David . Makes perfect sense . Green Party virtue signalers are never held to account because they will never get more than 5 %
promoting a return to cave dweller status .