New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez posted a reaction to fellow Democrat Terry McAuliffe‘s loss in Virginia on Instagram, claiming his campaign was not progressive enough.
“Honestly, if anything, I think that the results show the limits of trying to run a fully, 100 percent, super moderated campaign that does not excite, speak to, or energize a progressive base,” Ocasio-Cortez opined. “And, frankly we weren’t even really invited to contribute on that race.”
Her final statement was likely referring to the stumping done in Virginia by other politicians, such as former President Barack Obama, Vice President Kamala Harris, Stacy Abrams, President Joe Biden and others, many of whom made in-person visits and speeches.
It would seem that Ocasio-Cortez and many of her more extreme compatriots, colloquially known as “The Squad,” had not been invited to stump for McAuliffe.
The McAuliffe campaign called on many big-name Democrat politicians to stump for him after his comments regarding parent’s involvement in their child’s education:
“I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach,” said McAuliffe, who served as governor of Virginia from 2014 to 2018.
Immediately following this statement, McAuliffe retracted it in a political ad and invited famous political moderates to come speak for him. But, it was too late—McAuliffe had made a fatal mistake and continued to stumble.
The situation became especially dire when the Loudoun County scandal was uncovered. McAuliffe sided with the school board after the coverup of the rape of a young girl in a bathroom during school hours.
While it was possible that a more extreme Democrat presence like Ocasio-Cortez and “The Squad” may have helped McAuliffe, it seemed more likely the most important matter to the Virginian voters was involvement in their child’s education.
Given all that has been uncovered about corruption in the school system and hesitancy of school boards to receive criticism, it seems unlikely that a socialist presence would have turned the tides of this particular election.
