SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
New York U.S. House candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks at a progressive fundraiser on August 2, 2018 in Los Angeles. (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)
As Critics Obsess Over Her Finances, Ocasio-Cortez Urges Media to Focus on Issue 'Actually Worth Airtime': Low-Wage Jobs
"While we‘re discussing personal finances," says newly-elected progressive, "Trump's tax dodges represent millions of dollars taken from schoolchildren, teachers, firehouses, senior centers, and more."
Nov 20, 2018
Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez continued to shoot back at those who draw attention to--and criticize--the amount in her savings account by calling for coverage instead of far more worthy issues--the nation's pervasive low-wage jobs and President Donald Trump's "public theft"--and accusing some sitting congresspeople of lashing out at her because they are blinded by privilege, and thus unable to represent their constituents.
The latest push-back follows a CNBC report in which Corbin Trent, Ocasio-Cortez's director of communications, said the newly-elected progressive Democrat had "well below $7,000" in her savings account. The news report also included comments from financial experts who said someone of her age should have between $8,750 and $30,000 in savings and at least $27,000 tucked away for retirement--amounts some derided as "unrealistic" for millennials given burdensome student loan debt, low wages, and high housing prices.
Ocasio-Cortez tweeted late Tuesday night:
In another tweet, Ocasio-Cortez pointed to what she sees as the real "fear" motivating the intense look at her bank account and what her wardrobe costs:
According reporter Leah Fessler, critics' continued attention on Ocasio-Cortez's finances is a backfire. What they "still don't understand," she writes at Quartz, "is that their focus on how she doesn't meet their expectations only amplifies her power--and deepens her connection to the young, ambitious, working- and middle-class Americans who see her as their representative on the national stage."
Some of those Americans took to Twitter to make that connection clear:
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez continued to shoot back at those who draw attention to--and criticize--the amount in her savings account by calling for coverage instead of far more worthy issues--the nation's pervasive low-wage jobs and President Donald Trump's "public theft"--and accusing some sitting congresspeople of lashing out at her because they are blinded by privilege, and thus unable to represent their constituents.
The latest push-back follows a CNBC report in which Corbin Trent, Ocasio-Cortez's director of communications, said the newly-elected progressive Democrat had "well below $7,000" in her savings account. The news report also included comments from financial experts who said someone of her age should have between $8,750 and $30,000 in savings and at least $27,000 tucked away for retirement--amounts some derided as "unrealistic" for millennials given burdensome student loan debt, low wages, and high housing prices.
Ocasio-Cortez tweeted late Tuesday night:
In another tweet, Ocasio-Cortez pointed to what she sees as the real "fear" motivating the intense look at her bank account and what her wardrobe costs:
According reporter Leah Fessler, critics' continued attention on Ocasio-Cortez's finances is a backfire. What they "still don't understand," she writes at Quartz, "is that their focus on how she doesn't meet their expectations only amplifies her power--and deepens her connection to the young, ambitious, working- and middle-class Americans who see her as their representative on the national stage."
Some of those Americans took to Twitter to make that connection clear:
Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez continued to shoot back at those who draw attention to--and criticize--the amount in her savings account by calling for coverage instead of far more worthy issues--the nation's pervasive low-wage jobs and President Donald Trump's "public theft"--and accusing some sitting congresspeople of lashing out at her because they are blinded by privilege, and thus unable to represent their constituents.
The latest push-back follows a CNBC report in which Corbin Trent, Ocasio-Cortez's director of communications, said the newly-elected progressive Democrat had "well below $7,000" in her savings account. The news report also included comments from financial experts who said someone of her age should have between $8,750 and $30,000 in savings and at least $27,000 tucked away for retirement--amounts some derided as "unrealistic" for millennials given burdensome student loan debt, low wages, and high housing prices.
Ocasio-Cortez tweeted late Tuesday night:
In another tweet, Ocasio-Cortez pointed to what she sees as the real "fear" motivating the intense look at her bank account and what her wardrobe costs:
According reporter Leah Fessler, critics' continued attention on Ocasio-Cortez's finances is a backfire. What they "still don't understand," she writes at Quartz, "is that their focus on how she doesn't meet their expectations only amplifies her power--and deepens her connection to the young, ambitious, working- and middle-class Americans who see her as their representative on the national stage."
Some of those Americans took to Twitter to make that connection clear:
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.