Caroline Brehman/ZUMA
If you, like me, have been struggling to muster interest in the GameStop news cycle, I’m here to tell you that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has given us a reason to care.
After Ted Cruz attempted to get cute and show some rare agreement with the New York congresswoman by joining her criticism of the trading app Robinhood for blocking certain GameStop trades, Ocasio-Cortez promptly told Cruz to fuck off. While lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have said the move is unfair to rank and file investors, the Texas senator had a prominent role in backing pro-Trump demands to overturn the election, a role that gave succor to the insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol. Since the January 6 riot, Ocasio-Cortez has been candid about the trauma she faced, telling followers in an Instagram Live that she thought she “was going to die” in the attack.
I am happy to work with Republicans on this issue where there’s common ground, but you almost had me murdered 3 weeks ago so you can sit this one out.
Happy to work w/ almost any other GOP that aren’t trying to get me killed.
In the meantime if you want to help, you can resign. https://t.co/4mVREbaqqm
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 28, 2021
In doing so, Ocasio-Cortez’s tweet went beyond one of her trademark social media dunks, deploying a clear directness that offers a stark contrast to the Republican party’s current efforts to obfuscate what they did this month: immediately following a murderous attack on the Capitol, an insurrection their party’s leader had directly incited, a majority of House Republicans, joined by prominent senators like Cruz, went back inside to deliver exactly what the mob wanted.
Keep Ocasio-Cortez’s straightforward account in mind, as Republicans are all but certain to keep misrepresenting the facts of the insurrection throughout Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial.
And with that, feel free to go back and join me in avoiding news about GameStop.
