# Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Cannot Afford to Move to Washington **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 9, 2018, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263 "2018-11-09T21:47:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/321 "2018-11-18T03:24:05Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Today on Twitter she claimed that she was confused for a spouse of a House member instead of a congresswoman and sent to the spouse’s luncheon instead of the member’s luncheon, and that yesterday she was challenged by security because they thought she must be an intern or staffer. > > Then of course she suggested that it was because of racism and/or sexism, thereby throwing her own party under the bus. Because really, what bad things AREN’T the result of sexism and/or racism? > > Then she capped off her day by staging a sit-in protest in Nancy Pelosi’s office over climate change… You seem very interested in Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. Is this all because you’re her Twitter-follower or do you use some news amalgamator to keep you up-to-date on her? Perhaps you should offer the new Congresswoman suggestions, e.g. help her to pick a Congressional role model. I don’t follow all these personalities as closely as you do, so could you please pick a suggested mentor from the following list of Congressmen, all presumably preferable to this “hilarious” young lady, that I’ve heard of? James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) Steve King (R-Iowa) Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) Joe Barton (R-Texas) Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/322 "2018-11-18T03:25:33Z")
You ate correct that ‘staged’ is the wrong word. She joined an existing sit-in. My apologies for that. As for her tweet… > [@Ocasio-Cortez's Twitter feed](#): > > Dem Spouse + Member luncheon were at the same time today. I was sent to spouse event. > > Last night I was stopped bc it was assumed I was an intern/staffer. > > Next time try believing women + people of color when they talk about their experiences being a woman or person of color. So, she wasn’t stopped because she’s the youngest member of Congress in history and might therefore confuse someone in a place filled with interns and staffers her age. No, it had to be because she’s a woman and a person of color. Of course. No 29 year old white male would EVER be confused for an intern or staffer, right? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/323 "2018-11-18T03:26:46Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > You seem very interested in Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. Is this all because you’re her Twitter-follower or do you use some news amalgamator to keep you up-to-date on her? > > Perhaps you should offer the new Congresswoman suggestions, e.g. help her to pick a Congressional role model. I don’t follow all these personalities as closely as you do, so could you please pick a suggested mentor from the following list of Congressmen, all presumably preferable to this “hilarious” young lady, that I’ve heard of? > > James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) > Steve King (R-Iowa) > Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) > Joe Barton (R-Texas) > Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) > > Thanks. Whataboutism. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/324 "2018-11-18T03:38:43Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > You ate correct that ‘staged’ is the wrong word. She joined an existing sit-in. My apologies for that. > > As for her tweet… > > So, she wasn’t stopped because she’s the youngest member of Congress in history and might therefore confuse someone in a place filled with interns and staffers her age. No, it had to be because she’s a woman and a person of color. Of course. No 29 year old white male would EVER be confused for an intern or staffer, right? How terrible that she expressed annoyance, and expressed an opinion on something that _she actually has life experience about_ and you do not. The horror! ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/325 "2018-11-18T03:45:01Z")
God forbid a woman of color be concerned about perceived bigotry against women and people of color. Luckily, white men are here to save the day by dismissing that concern, even when they (we) weren’t there! Hooray for white men with the amazing powers to dismiss any concerns about bigotry from hundreds of miles away! ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/326 "2018-11-18T04:36:56Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Whataboutism. Gee, I wonder which team I picked that up from! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/327 "2018-11-18T04:42:28Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > Move over George Soros, there’s a new leftie boogeyman terrifying God-fearing republicans everywhere. Watching them sputter in incoherent rage while an imaginary version of Ocasio-Cortez nests in their brains is both fascinating and repulsive. It’s looking like she might cause more problems for Democrats than Republicans. With a ramp up to the presidential elections she is going to be helping to unseat the Democrats serving around her in Congress. This could get interesting. [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.politico.com/amp/story/2018/11/17/ocasio-cortez-throws-support-behind-campaign-to-primary-democrats-1000529](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.politico.com/amp/story/2018/11/17/ocasio-cortez-throws-support-behind-campaign-to-primary-democrats-1000529) ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/328 "2018-11-18T04:48:19Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > It’s looking like she might cause more problems for Democrats than Republicans. With a ramp up to the presidential elections she is going to be helping to unseat the Democrats serving around her in Congress. This could get interesting. > > [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.politico.com/amp/story/2018/11/17/ocasio-cortez-throws-support-behind-campaign-to-primary-democrats-1000529](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.politico.com/amp/story/2018/11/17/ocasio-cortez-throws-support-behind-campaign-to-primary-democrats-1000529) Considering that she herself ran against an incumbent Dem from the left, it kinda makes sense that she’d support an organization that advocates taking on incumbent Dems from the left, at least in Dem-leaning seats. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/329 "2018-11-18T04:56:12Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Considering that she herself ran against an incumbent Dem from the left, it kinda makes sense that she’d support an organization that advocates taking on incumbent Dems from the left, at least in Dem-leaning seats. I’m sure the Speaker and senior Democrats will be very understanding about that. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/330 "2018-11-18T06:33:50Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > God forbid a woman of color be concerned about perceived bigotry against women and people of color. Luckily, white men are here to save the day by dismissing that concern, even when they (we) weren’t there! Hooray for white men with the amazing powers to dismiss any concerns about bigotry from hundreds of miles away! The problem is that many times us white guys from a hundred miles away get treated poorly because of inadvertance or cluelessness from people. If I go to an unfamiliar courthouse, I might be mistaken for a defendant instead of an attorney, or sometimes on the weekend, if I go to a grocery store and wear a certain color shirt, I am mistaken for a store employee. But when she, a young person, is mistaken for a staffer instead of a Congressperson, it is clearly and indisputably an act of racism and sexism upon the part of the other person. That is the issue us white guys have from miles away. We sometimes get treated poorly too, but we don’t have this crutch to lean on. And if we did have the crutch, we would be wrong to use it. Making an accusation of racism or sexism is a serious charge and she should not be allowed to get away with it unless she has evidence of it. That is seriously insulting to the people who likely made an honest, if clueless, mistake and they do not deserve to be slapped with that label unless she wants to grow up and prove the charge. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/331 "2018-11-18T12:53:07Z")
On the question of being stopped by the Capitol Police (I assume that’s what she meant) and beloved to be an intern or staffer - yeah, that’s some grade A arrogance right there. The Capitol Police consists of thousands of officers who have had just a few days to study the pictures of dozens of newly elected members of Congress. Being a member of Congress means that you can bypass security screenings, like metal detectors. Of course police should err on the side of not waving through people the don’t recognize. Usually it takes years or sometimes decades for politicians to develop the sense of entitlement that they are more important than the police whose only job is to protect THEM. She has managed to do it six weeks before being sworn in. ---
**Author:** ![Not\_Carlson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bc79bd/32.png) [@Not\_Carlson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_Carlson)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/332 "2018-11-18T13:23:35Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > The problem is that many times us white guys from a hundred miles away get treated poorly because of inadvertance or cluelessness from people. If I go to an unfamiliar courthouse, I might be mistaken for a defendant instead of an attorney, or sometimes on the weekend, if I go to a grocery store and wear a certain color shirt, I am mistaken for a store employee. > . . . Leaving aside the question of whether the incidences described by Ocasio-Cortez are actually indicative of any real sexual or racial discrimination, you do realize that the two scenarios you describe - A) Are not based on any assumptions made about you as a white male B) Do not represent any kind of discrimination against you - right? ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/333 "2018-11-18T13:26:24Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > So, she wasn’t stopped because she’s the youngest member of Congress in history and might therefore confuse someone in a place filled with interns and staffers her age. No, it had to be because she’s a woman and a person of color. Of course. No 29 year old white male would EVER be confused for an intern or staffer, right? The tweet in question was a response to someone else tweeting that what she had written about being mistaken for a staffer couldn’t be true. She is asking people to believe women and people of color when they describe their experiences, not ascribing the misidentification to being a woman or person of color. At least not in that tweet. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/334 "2018-11-18T13:57:35Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > The problem is that many times us white guys from a hundred miles away get treated poorly because of inadvertance or cluelessness from people. If I go to an unfamiliar courthouse, I might be mistaken for a defendant instead of an attorney, or sometimes on the weekend, if I go to a grocery store and wear a certain color shirt, I am mistaken for a store employee. > > But when she, a young person, is mistaken for a staffer instead of a Congressperson, it is clearly and indisputably an act of racism and sexism upon the part of the other person. That is the issue us white guys have from miles away. We sometimes get treated poorly too, but we don’t have this crutch to lean on. And if we did have the crutch, we would be wrong to use it. > > Making an accusation of racism or sexism is a serious charge and she should not be allowed to get away with it unless she has evidence of it. That is seriously insulting to the people who likely made an honest, if clueless, mistake and they do not deserve to be slapped with that label unless she wants to grow up and prove the charge. It’s seriously insulting to people of color and women when you assume you know better about their own experiences, from miles and miles away and diagnosis-by-internet, than they do. It’s possible she’s wrong about something, but there’s no way you’d know this, and your assumption that you would is the height of arrogance. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/335 "2018-11-18T17:04:25Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > On the question of being stopped by the Capitol Police (I assume that’s what she meant) and beloved to be an intern or staffer - yeah, that’s some grade A arrogance right there. > > The Capitol Police consists of thousands of officers who have had just a few days to study the pictures of dozens of newly elected members of Congress. Being a member of Congress means that you can bypass security screenings, like metal detectors. > > Of course police should err on the side of not waving through people the don’t recognize. > > Usually it takes years or sometimes decades for politicians to develop the sense of entitlement that they are more important than the police whose only job is to protect THEM. She has managed to do it six weeks before being sworn in. Being that the entirety of the rest of your post is based upon AOC reacting to her treatment by the Capitol Police, should you not be _sure_ that is the case instead of just assuming it? ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/336 "2018-11-18T18:14:08Z")
> [@LoneRhino](#): > > The real question is: Why is FOX spending so much time on a freshman member of congress? I don’t ever remember such attention being paid to a person that hasn’t even taken office yet. They must really be terrified of her. I think much of it is about her youth and looks. There’s an army of drooling, conservative males out there who just want to sit down with little missy and make her see the error of her ways. She needs to be careful about where she goes; she’s in danger of being mansplained to death. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/337 "2018-11-18T18:40:07Z")
> [@Fiddle\_Peghead](#): > > Being that the entirety of the rest of your post is based upon AOC reacting to her treatment by the Capitol Police, should you not be _sure_ that is the case instead of just assuming it? No. I’m not a fucking social media investigator who needs to plumb the depths of some entitled-sounding tweet from a millennial. I feel perfectly comfortable forming an opinion based on the information I have at this time. If I’m wrong, I’ll apologize or amend my comments as appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/338 "2018-11-18T18:40:54Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Considering that she herself ran against an incumbent Dem from the left, it kinda makes sense that she’d support an organization that advocates taking on incumbent Dems from the left, at least in Dem-leaning seats. As I mentioned a while ago, in some ways, the ‘easy’ part for Democrats was to take over the House. I definitely appreciate the energy that Ocasio-Cortez and other freshmen/women are bringing to the House, and I agree with pushing the party more toward the left, but I also hope that they don’t become raging bulls in the China closet. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/339 "2018-11-18T19:20:32Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > No. > > I’m not a fucking social media investigator who needs to plumb the depths of some entitled-sounding tweet from a millennial. I feel perfectly comfortable forming an opinion based on the information I have at this time. > > If I’m wrong, I’ll apologize or amend my comments as appropriate. Information apart from the tweet? ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2018, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/340 "2018-11-18T19:23:51Z")
I love it that right wingers are already calling her She Guevara before she is even sworn in. They must be really afraid. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263.md?page=18)