The progressive left’s diabolical quest for world domination is off to a rough start in the 119th Congress after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) failed to muster enough votes to become the next Democratic leader of the powerful House Oversight Committee.
AOC was up against Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), who won the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee vote 34-27, according to NBC News. Connolly was endorsed by the New Democrat Coalition, a group of 100 “forward-thinking” moderate lawmakers who bill themselves as the largest caucus in the party, despite the 74-year-old lawmaker announcing last month he had been diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus.
“New Dems are proud to endorse our colleague, friend, and fellow New Dem Rep. Gerry Connolly for Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. Rep. Connolly is a strong and talented communicator and a dedicated workhorse prepared to expertly lead the committee in defending our Democratic priorities and standing up to the Trump administration’s extremist actions. He is the right choice to advance the interests of our full caucus,” said the coalition in a statement.
“Throughout his sixteen years on the Committee, Rep. Connolly has been a courageous and formidable force fighting against extremist GOP conspiracy theories and advancing thoughtful, commonsense legislation,” the release continued. “As we prepare for the new Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress, the Oversight Committee Democrats will play a critical role in protecting our democratic institutions and pushing back on bad faith actors. We are fully confident that Rep. Connolly will lead the committee with a no-nonsense approach and a steady hand.”
Ocasio-Cortez had the backing of the 95-member Progressive Caucus, of which she is a member. Axios’s Andrew Solender noted the contest “is quickly becoming an ideological – in addition to generational – proxy fight.”
The full Democratic caucus still needs to vote on the steering committee’s recommendations, which are typically adopted.
For what it’s worth, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was actively campaigning “to tank” AOC’s bid, according to Punchbowl News.
“Pelosi is making calls on behalf of Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who is running against AOC to be ranking member of Oversight,” the outlet reported last week. “Pelosi has made her support for Connolly publicly known. But her behind-the-scenes maneuvering shows the amount of political capital Pelosi’s willing to put into the contest, which will be decided next week.
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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