A Twitter spat between Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez derailed after she accused him of being silent about white supremacy.
Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat, accused Cruz, a Republican, of “riding in the quiet car” of a white supremacist train after he posted a meme mocking former Vice President Joe Biden’s latest train-tour campaign event. Cruz accused Biden of joining the “radical left” while Ocasio-Cortez referenced President Trump’s remarks about the Proud Boys during the debate on Tuesday night.
“Biden may be the Democrat Party’s nominee, but we know who is driving the train,” Cruz wrote in a tweet featuring a cartoon of a train carrying Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, Ilhan Omar, and others.
“I must say, Ted Cruz making poorly executed memes while riding in the quiet car of the White Supremacist Express is pretty on brand for both him and 2020,” Ocasio-Cortez responded.
I must say, Ted Cruz making poorly executed memes while riding in the quiet car of the White Supremacist Express is pretty on brand for both him and 2020 https://t.co/cqWKxHFKs9
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 1, 2020
Several Republicans have been asked to condemn white supremacy as part of the fallout from Trump’s debate when he told the Proud Boys, a far-right group tied to hateful ideologies, to “stand back” and “stand by.” Many people, including Ocasio-Cortez, took this as a refusal to condemn white supremacy.
“Donald Trump is a white supremacist. People have been warning about this for a long time,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted after the debate. “They were ridiculed, called hyperbolic & radical — not [because] they were wrong, but [because] others couldn’t accept that our country elected a supremacist as President. This is fascism at our door.”
Donald Trump is a white supremacist.
People have been warning about this for a long time.
They were ridiculed, called hyperbolic & radical – not bc they were wrong, but bc others couldn’t accept that our country elected a supremacist as President.
This is fascism at our door. https://t.co/sahloCJt25
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 30, 2020
Cruz defended Trump during a heated debate on CNN on Wednesday. He said he was glad that Trump had clarified his remarks to note that he does not support the Proud Boys and that he wants law enforcement to handle rioters, not Proud Boys militias.
Ocasio-Cortez and Cruz, who are both of Hispanic heritage, have gotten in several Twitter spats over the past two years, but they have also worked with each other on legislation to prevent lawmakers from becoming lobbyists after they leave office.
