Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-Queens/Bronx) called for a “9/11-style commission” to look into the Trump administration’s policy of separating migrant families at the US border.
Speaking Saturday at a town hall in Queens, she said the US has a “lifelong commitment” to migrant children who have been separated under the policy, which the administration said it discontinued after coming under heavy criticism.
It “will take a 9/11-style commission,” the liberal darling said. “We need a commission on child separation.”
Her mention of 9/11 to criticize a Trump policy drew a quick rebuke from the Republican National Committee.
“Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s divisive rhetoric never ends. Whether it’s smearing the US as running ‘concentration camps’ on the border or downplaying 9/11, the socialist ‘squad’ has shown us how anti-American they are,” RNC spokesperson Liz Harrington said in a statement to The Post, referencing AOC’s “squad” of like-minded Dems including Rep. Ilhan Omar (Minn.).
“If the Democrats truly cared about addressing the crisis on the border, they would fix the loopholes in our immigration laws,” Harrington added,
AOC addressed President Trump’s recent controversial statements saying she, Omar and Reps. Ayanna Pressley (Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.) should “go back” to their home countries.
“They sent me back… to Queens,” Ocasio-Cortez jokingly said, drawing replies of “welcome back!” from the crowd of roughly 250 at PS Q16 in Corona.
The democratic socialist tried to hand an olive branch to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a move that followed the recent outbreak of a bitter war of words between the two.
“I’m hoping to have a more open conversation with the speaker, seeing what opportunities there are and really getting a lay of the land as where we are as a caucus,” AOC said.
However, Ocasio-Cortez couldn’t help but take some new shots at her own party over its handling of immigration.
“This is something that started before Trump and we all know that,” she said. “I can’t get people in my own party to not send troops to the border. The reason for that is fear-based and it has to do with folks in other parts of the country believing things about immigration.”
Former President Barack Obama deported more than 3 million people during his administration.
President Trump recently upped the stakes on immigration.
Last week, he launched ICE raids on 10 cities that were aimed at deporting about 2,000 illegal immigrant families.
In New York City, Mayor de Blasio said ICE made attempted eight raids, none of which were successful.
Comments