Ocasio-Cortez and freshman allies amass power, creating problems for Pelosi and party

Fox News ^ | March 12, 2019 | Judson Berger, Chad Pergram

[jazusamo]

Freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s Twitter bio declares her the “Unbossed Congresswoman” for Michigan’s 13th District.

While the moniker has roots in Shirley Chisholm’s successful campaign to become the first black congresswoman, nowadays it also could be seen as a blunt message to Democratic leadership: Nobody is bossing around the class of 2019.

And that’s a problem for party bosses.

On everything from the Green New Deal to impeachment to criticism of Israel, a squad of first-year congresswomen are flexing their muscle and posing an implicit challenge to Democratic honchos like Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Their stridently liberal agenda – and power to steer the national conversation via social media and press attention – has fueled tensions inside the party tent that in turn are testing leadership's control while stirring political concerns going into 2020.

“All of our problems are caused by three people,” one senior House Democrat lamented to Fox News.

That would be New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar and Tlaib – all freshmen, and all uniquely unencumbered by things like decorum or deference to party elders.

Ocasio-Cortez recently made waves by appearing to warn Democrats who vote with Republicans that they’re “putting themselves on a list” of possible primary targets (though she later denied she intended such a threat).

Tlaib famously made headlines upon taking office by vowing they’d “impeach the motherf---er,” in reference to President Trump. Pelosi this week tried to rein in the impeachment chatter, taking a firm public stance against that route. Yet in the immediate aftermath of Tlaib’s vow, Pelosi downplayed the hubbub, saying she wouldn’t use that language but it’s nothing worse than Trump has said.

Fast-forward to this month, and Pelosi faced another discipline problem – concerning Omar.

[GOPJ]

Socialists are working as an underground coordinated team... and they don’t worry about ‘playing fair’... Nancy’s gonna have a hard time competing with that...