Ocasio-Cortez: Democratic 'elites' who want Biden to drop out want Harris off ticket

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) took a swing at Democratic "elites" who are pushing for President Biden to stand down from the 2024 race, warning they are also "not interested" in seeing Vice President Harris atop the ticket.

Her comments came during an Instagram Live on Thursday night following former President Trump's highly anticipated speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he officially accepted the GOP nomination for president.

“If you think that there is consensus among the people who want Joe Biden to leave that they will support Vice President Harris, you would be mistaken,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “They’re not going to be fully honest, but I’m going to be honest for them."

"I’m in these rooms. I see what they say in conversations," she continued. “I'm here to tell you that a huge amount of the donor class and a huge amount of these elites and a huge amount of these folks in these rooms that I see that are pushing for President Biden to not be the nominee also are not interested in seeing Vice President being the nominee."

Ocasio-Cortez has remained one of Biden's biggest allies since a disastrous debate performance last month, where he stumbled at times and sounded raspy, launching an intraparty struggle regarding his candidacy. Concerns around his age and mental acuity have led to a growing faction of Democrats calling on the incumbent to withdraw from the race.

“I'm pretty sure a lot of people knew that the President is old. President Biden is very old. Donald Trump is also very old and a racist and a neo-Nazi,” she argued. “A lot of people don't love that we have the same exact match-up all over again, which is to say that the debate didn't change much at all. It didn't really change a lot in terms of people's perceptions, in terms of where the electorate is at and going into the debate.” 

Nearly 30 Congressional Democrats, including three senators, have now pressed Biden to step aside and "pass the torch" to a different candidate. Since Wednesday, former President Obama, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) have all privately raised concerns about his ability to beat Trump in November and the downballot implications of a potential loss.

During the Instagram Live, Ocasio-Cortez also raised logistical concerns about the efforts to replace Biden, warning that Republicans plan to mount legal challenges if Democrats choose someone else as the nominee.

“It has been confirmed by the Republican Speaker of the House that Republicans are already preparing legal challenges to any change on ballot that may happen,” she said. “The possibility of our elections being decided by the Supreme Court ruling skyrocket."

According to previous reporting by The Hill, the only state whose filing deadline has passed so far is New Mexico. Democrats could still provide a different nominee than Biden to states for the November election — though the president has already garnered about 3,850 pledged delegates, per The Hill/Decision Desk HQ's tracker.

Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the "squad," also slammed "elites" who had stood by Biden in the past and prevented a conversation about replacing him earlier in the nomination process.

“I'm looking at a watch and I'm looking at a clock and I'm looking at a calendar. And I think that if personally, people want to have this conversation six months ago, eight months ago, a year ago. It's a very different landscape of logistics,” she said. 

“If you're an everyday person that has this opinion, I'm not angry, but this whole class of people who are coming with this other opinion now have supported the president the entire time, and many of those people are the same people who closed ranks around anybody who wanted to raise this conversation a year ago,” Ocasio-Cortez added.

The New York Democrat reiterated her previous criticisms of those in her party who have leaked information to the press in recent weeks about the fight over Biden standing down, calling it “bulls‑‑‑.” 

“There have been lots of Democrats who have been giving little anonymous quotes to the press,” she said. “I'm sorry, I'm going to say because it's after the midnight, that's bulls‑‑‑.” 

“If you have an opinion, say it in public. But the idea that you are an elected official and you are supposed to be responsible for a community, and you're just going to text some journalists on the low and say, 'This is what I think — don't put my name next to it,'" she continued. "What are you here to do? If that's your opinion, and if that's what you think is best for the country, put your name on it.” 

Earlier this week, Ocasio-Cortez pressured Democrats who have given anonymous quotes to the press about being "resigned" to losing the election if Biden runs to retire. She doubled down on those calls during the social media event.

“Leave. Just leave. Like, that is so garbage; that is such a fundamental lack of leadership,” she said. “Go cash in on Wall Street. If that's what you feel like, why keep that seat warm? This job is hard. It takes a lot of effort. You're resigning yourself to losing, why don't you just turn in your keys early and give it to someone who gives a damn?”