New Book Deep Dives AOC's Democratic Dilemma: How 'The Squad' Became A Political Pariah

"The Squad: AOC and the Hope of a Political Revolution," penned by Ryan Grim, a reporter for The Intercept, discloses that the progressive congresswoman has been a source of contention within her party since her first day in office.

According to Grim, "The gap between AOC's power outside the Capitol and the display of it on day one inside could hardly have been greater. To reshape that landscape she was rapidly sacrificing her relationships with colleagues."

December 06, 2023

Grim's book, which is set to be released on Tuesday, suggests that Ocasio-Cortez's strained relationships extend beyond moderate Democrats. She reportedly clashed with far-left Representative Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington, who felt "firmly usurped" by Ocasio-Cortez despite the latter's "very little track record of actually organizing." Grim noted that this was "not something (she) would quickly forgive."

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The book also details the immediate tension between Ocasio-Cortez and Pelosi following the former's election in 2018. Grim wrote, "Getting Pelosi’s unfiltered thoughts was both eye-opening and disturbing.

Ocasio-Cortez, who had made the slogan ‘Abolish Ice’ [US Immigration and Customs Enforcement] central to her challenge to Crowley, was particularly perplexed to hear Pelosi say that the phrase had been injected into American political discourse by the Russians and that Democrats needed to quash it."

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Ocasio-Cortez reportedly texted, "The amount of times she told me that stupid 'I have protest signs older than you in my basement' sh*t. Like yeah but mine don't collect dust."

The New York representative faced backlash following her appearance at the 2021 Met Gala, where she wore a "Tax the Rich" dress. This led to multiple ethics complaints and a House Ethics Committee investigation.

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Grim wrote that her choice of attire and attendance "infuriated every organization that had either been told she couldn't attend their event or, more commonly, simply been ignored by her office."

Ocasio-Cortez also claimed that Pelosi was upset with her for highlighting weaknesses in the House Democrat re-election strategies. "I told her DCCC campaign vendors sucked," AOC said, "and that it was strange that after I beat [Joe] Crowley not a single person bothered to ask how I beat him… and how I think we should pay attention and ask questions when that happens, to spot weaknesses. She got so mad at me."

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Grim's book portrays the Squad, including Ocasio-Cortez and her associates, as being "consumed by toxic infighting and grievances." Evan Weber, co-founder of the Sunrise Movement, told Grim, "I think we had done such a good job up until that point of massaging the language that there was a kind of arrogance of like: ‘We can actually appease everyone here’ instead of sticking to our guns and making a real choice about charting a different direction."