Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is both radical and unqualified to be president. But she still has a clear path to winning the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028.
On Tuesday night, socialist Zohran Mamdani became the mayor-elect of New York City. He wants a rent freeze, city-owned grocery stores, and a $30-an-hour minimum wage.
He once expressed his support for “seizing the means of production.” In 2020, he wrote on Twitter, “The NYPD is racist, anti-queer and a major threat to public safety.” He wants taxpayer-funded gender-mutilation surgeries.
His extreme positions haven’t hurt him politically. Polling suggests socialism is exactly what younger liberal voters want. This is what happens when public schools and colleges spend decades indoctrinating students in anti-American ideologies, such as critical race theory.
America’s most credentialed young people don’t understand basic economics. They’ve learned America is evil, not the greatest country in human history. They’re ignorant of socialism’s long record of failure.
This is where Democrat leaders should have stepped in and rebuked their left flank. Instead, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul endorsed him.
Mamdani’s rise shows Ocasio-Cortez has a clear path to the Democrats’ 2028 presidential nomination if she decides to run. Here’s why:
Look back at the Democrats’ 2020 primary process. Pete Buttigieg won in Iowa, but Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was a close second. Sanders topped the field in New Hampshire. He dominated in Nevada, although former Vice President Joe Biden came in second.
Thanks to decades of work and being then-President Barack Obama’s vice president, Biden had strong support among black voters. That powered him to victory in South Carolina. Fearing Sanders would lose to President Donald Trump, the Democratic Party establishment rallied around Biden and secured him the nomination.
Since 2020, Democrats haven’t repudiated Sanders’ socialism. They’ve sought to implement it. In 2021, Biden signed a stimulus bill that could have been written by a Sanders administration. It led to massive inflation. The party has grown more radical on issues like open borders and supporting men in women’s sports, too.
The endorsements of Mamdani are evidence that establishment Democrats have bent their knees to the socialists. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., went along with a strategically reckless government shutdown for the same reason. He fears his left flank.
And Sanders—who nearly won the 2020 nomination in a less radical party—is passing the socialist torch to AOC.
If she runs, that will likely give her at least 30% of the Democratic base once the election gets closer. Now, if she faced a single strong opponent, that wouldn’t be enough to win. But the field looks crowded. Expect California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Buttigieg, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and even Kamala Harris to test the waters.
Democrats’ 2028 presidential primary could end up like Republicans’ 2016 primary. Trump captured a sizable portion of the Republican base with his celebrity and hard-line stance on immigration.
Initially, his opponents largely went after each other. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and then-Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida seemed to think they could beat Trump one-on-one if only they could outlast the other contenders. Instead, Trump racked up victories and unstoppable momentum.
In this scenario, AOC would be like Trump, although his ideas and leadership skills far surpass hers. Newsom could probably beat her head-to-head. But it’s not just Republicans who’ve noticed how sleazy the California governor is. As Newsom faces attacks, Sanders will be busy hyping AOC. Newsom will fear going after her radicalism and inexperience, worried about offending voters he’d need in a general election.
Republicans shouldn’t be laughing too hard. As Trump himself proved in 2016, it’s a mistake to assume the nominee of a major party has no chance of winning.
COPYRIGHT 2025 CREATORS.COM
Victor Joecks is a columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Reprinted with permission from The Daily Signal by Victor Joecks.
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
What a nightmare to think about! There is a prophecy talked about 50 years ago where the USA would be led by a woman president who would fold up from pressure of other world leaders and situations and bring this nation to its knees. AOC is a candidate that fits this prophecy. Let’s not let this happen to our nation.
Please don’t compare her to Trump. She’s more like their 0bama 2.0 – someone from nowhere and nothing into a groomed and planted placeholder.
God help us. She is a Democrat Socialist. They are destroying our country from within.
We are not talking about the leaders but spoilt adolescents who have no idea what working for a living is, they would not be able to efficiently run a small company never mind the city or country. There is not a shred of emotional intelligence or stability, not to mention the capacity to reason, they spit out whatever spit brings to the tongue, they need a lesson in the facts of life, as do those voting for them, would be nice if they could experimentally run a small community of those willing to live their dream, how long would that last.
AOC is about as qualified to be POTUS as she is to be a brain surgeon and putting her in either position would be a disaster.
AOC is Harris 2.0. No brains but is malleable to communists. Trump was his own man didn’t need 2 billion dollars in donations to win. Was not beholden to anyone. He is confident in the problems he tackles. He is only beholden to the people. He takes no salary, uses his own money to improve the White House. AOC comes with a lot of baggage and beholden to a lot of billionaire donors. We saw it under puppet Biden. He sold America to the Chinese for 10% for the big guy. AOC will do the same. Or any of the other names mentioned. Especially Newsom is in so many pockets he doesn’t know what lie he has told and to whom. The rest have no brains except maybe Shapiro. Let’s not be complacent many conservatives criticize Trump. Democrats never criticize their leaders. They always have followed the chosen leader in power. And after Obama they thought they had a dictatorship for life. We have a chance to stop the direction the democrats are going if we only want to see it.
This scares the hell out of me.
AOC is selling out our country to Socialism and Communism!!! All she wants is the money she is making under the table!! She is also a liar and so dumb it makes you wonder how she can go from a bar tender to a politician then president!!!!!!
Well, three years with Mamdani working his magic on NYC by the time the next general election rolls along should, at the very least, be a glaring repudiation of most of the left’s policies! Newsome…well, just look at California!
I rebuke this curse! Frump will not be the next Trump, she doesn’t have the Cortex to be President even if it activates Occasionally.
Truly, if NYC is STUPID enough to elect “That” guy, then the nation is STUPID enough to elect “THAT” woman. All she has to do is promise everything will be FREE FREE FREE and the nation will go STRAIGHT DOWN THE TUBES. Most young folks today have no idea how the REAL world actually works.
But they have the newest cellphones! “See what mine can do? My parents bought it for me!”
Who is laughing? The radical liberals (Marxists) are dangerous and violent. When I see Mamdani and AOC yelling and shaking their hands at the people in their crowds, all I can see is the films showing Hitler screaming at throngs of people. It is NOT President Trump or any other Republican who is acting like Hitler. I am praying daily that our country does not fall into that dictator trap and so would many of the younger radicals if they knew what Hitler was really like. They have no idea. Ignorance is bliss and their ignorance my just push us into the depths of Marxism/Communism.
Like Mamdani, Sandy Cortez has NO qualifications to be president or anything else. I don’t think that mixing some drinks in a bar is a skill needed by a world leader! She [and Mamdani] have glib speech which low-IQ people fall for but no knowledge of how the real world operates. I cannot see her posing any threat to Vance, Rubio, or Trump [LOL] in 2028!
I wish all Americans would watch “A Gentleman in Moscow” now available by streaming. This is what will eventually happen in America if we turn toward communism.
AOC has about as much ability and intelligence to be president as does Pres.Trump’s little toe.- and about as much brain power. The fact that she is even being considered reflects that there is huge danger in our country now caused by Left/Communist (Socialsm is Communism) propaganda and the continual brainwashing in our schools, K-college, of the generation now becoming voting age — and the tragedy? They have ZERO critical thinking skills or even any curiosity about what the’d really be voting for.
OAC (Original American Communist) despises the America that We the People know.
But what she LOVES are Socialists, Comminists, open borders, HIGH crime, supporting, protecting and defending illegals, drug dealers, Jew-haters, and ALL other scum. And she HATES EVERYTHING AMERICA STANDS FOR. A TRUE ENEMY WITHIN.
Aoc will win if she is the chosen one. Bernie Sanders is too old and hasn’t lived the life of a true Socialist ( He owns too many houses in too many states). Know, if the Dems run AOC, the younger voters will vote her in. They like what they think she says even though most of the time it is Gibberish.
One just needs to read our Bible and see where we are headed. ” in the days of Noah”
She could be bartender in chief! If she’s even that smart.
Well, Mao Zedong said, paraphrasing, ‘We will not fire a shot to destroy the American government.’
TRUMP – Extremely High IQ, INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL, IN THE TOP THREE POTUS, and America-loving PATRIOT.
OAC Original American Communist, America-hating, Criminal-loving, Extremely LOW IQ MORON.
I say “Bring it!” I can think of a potential GOP candidate who could swallow her whole!
AOC’s followers and advocates are ignorant of facts and history. She is typical of all socialist/democrats(communists). She is a pathological liar and corrupt crook. She routinely violates election campaign laws and like Obama and the other democrats uses the American taxpayers money as her American express card. Like all of those that utilize communism as their platform she is a maligner.
she will be fully supported by the media [4th branch of govt.] to become president.
the people having become complacent and choosing the easy path will allow this.
This is a good article to make you sit up and smell the roses.
She would be the worst thing to ever happen to our country. All she knows how to do is pour a drink…if that.
The 11/4 elections put the stupidity of the American voters on display. Mamdani is called a democratic socialist… Let us tell it like it is- he is a communist. My governor-elect, Mikie Sherrill, endorsed Mamdani, which to me makes her a disgrace to the Navy officer’s uniform she wore. She was probably told to do so by the far left under threat, showing that she has no guts to stand for what is right.
I agree with the comments that are posted about AOC.
What we need to do is clean up the crap being taught in our universities. Maybe stopping money from taxpayers through government will start that. Stop educating Chinese communists. Start showing the effects of socialism and how it has not worked anywhere, and keep that failure in the forefront until it sinks in to those that have been indoctrinated otherwise. The Republican party needs to get (buy the time) on the mainstream media to get the message across. Enough said.
I believe either AOC or some other candidate just as ignorant as she is will be our next president if Republicans do not do something about our flawed election procedures. I read a lot of history. I’ve learned that Democrats have been cheating to win elections for over 100 years. They have it perfected. They will continue to win until Republicans find a way to stop the fraud and other cheating. Voter ID of some sort is desperately needed.
Could you imagine her having a summit or meeting separately with Putin, Xi, Maduro???
Talk about a nightmare!!!
It would be interesting to see how that would go. AOC is probably the dumbest person not just in congress, but in the entire state of New York. Dumb as a stump! If she runs for president, it would be the death knoll for the Demonrats. For a gal who supposedly has a degree in economics, she is ABSOLUTELY clueless! And don’t forget her wise words that we’re all going to die in 12 years!! “Ahhh! The sky is falling!”
Please don’t use Ocasio-Cortez and President Trump in the same sentence. It’s like saying a fine steak and rotten eggs are about the same. This moron has nothing to offer including a bright mind. Can you imagine her stopping wars by negotiating with a world leader on the behalf of America? Those who support her are unfortunately as messed up in the head as she is.
The problem is that the democrats are so full of hate for Donald Trump, they will vote for anyone just to get Trump out of office.
We need to stop allowing just anyone to be president. I believe the president should have been born in America. Has a sound mind and good common sense.
If you weren’t born in this country, you should not be qualified to be president. By electing AOC, we would just be getting another demented Biden. Like a very wise senator said, “AOC is the reason they put directions on shampoo bottles”. All you have to do is listen to one of her confusing speeches to know she is a bit lacking in the intelligence department.
I also believe that the Republicans in office are NOT doing their best job at their job. C’mon guys and gals, I can count on one hand the ones who are fighting for all they are worth to straighten this country out. The rest of you, get off your thumbs and start fighting for our freedoms and the Constitution. If you are not able or willing, get out of politics. Get some sense of teamwork here and work together to accomplish our goals.
I cannot imagine a list of more unqualified people than these: Newsom, Buttigieg, JB Pritzker, Penn Gov. Josh Shapiro, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and Kamala Harris
No! She doesn’t have the depth to be compared in any way to Trump, from any perspective
AOC won’t be the Democrats Trump but she quite possibly will be the Democrats CHUMP!
What a scary thought. That someone as stupid as AOC can be considered to run our Country is too stupid to even consider. Compare her screaming speeches to that of Hitler.
Boy, the demonrats really have a lot of bad individuals to choose from don’t they? No way would I ever vote for Ocasio-cortez, Newscum, Buttgig, Harris, or any of the other idiots listed…but especially these. This country would be in deep sh** if any of them got elected.
So, experience and intellectual quality are no longer considerations when the public chooses those individuals who will supposedly be charged with managing the proper affairs and business of the republic? A comely former bartender will soon be sufficient to head the incoming staff of opportunists who will infest the halls of governement? America is on a downward slide into the morass of inconsequentiality.
Well, she’s cute. And since JFK, that’s all that matters to democrats.
I dislike this person SO MUCH, that I do not ever read what is said about her anymore. SHE NEEDS TO BE DEPORTED, NEVER TO BE ALLOWED BACK IN THE COUNTRY.
If AOC is the Democrats choice for a leader, they are more totally insane than anyone can imagine. Most of the time, she forgets to take her foot out of her mouth!!!
Reading a lot of the comments, AOC may be the one that the Democrats pick to run. At least she is good at yelling, jumping up and down to get attention and isn’t that what the Main Stream Media reports? In order to get some young minds to sit up and listen maybe having some young intelligent journalists who starts digging out the facts and reports what is really going on. It is not just about selling a product, it is about good old fashioned education for the writers and for the readers. Many “news” stories are just a couple of paragraphs with no substance! We need to get the truth and facts out there for all to see!
Any of the aforementioned democrats seeking the presidential nomination is a frightening outcome. I’m not familiar with Josh Shapiro, except that he is a popular governor in Pennsylvania. Most likely the more moderate democrat of the bunch. However, he is Jewish and the Democratic Party has not only become more a communistic/socialistic, but, also an anti-Semitic party. So Shapiro will most likely not be given the nomination.
that’s 3,or 4 you must be 100% idiot.
it WILL happen if she does like biden* and surrounds herself with more intelligent socialist/communist and the PEOPLE want her!
So I see AMAC is doing comedy now!!