Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defends Democrat who set off fire alarm as key vote loomed, citing charges against New York opponent
Republicans calling for action against the New York Democrat Jamaal Bowman for triggering a fire alarm in a congressional office building as a vote loomed on a deal to avoid a government shutdown should “check their own values”, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said, citing the lack of action against a GOP New Yorker, George Santos, after he was indicted for fraud.
“They are protecting someone who has lied to the American people, lied to the United States House of Representatives, lied to congressional investigators,” Ocasio-Cortez, widely known as AOC, told CNN’s State of the Union.
“But they’re filing a motion to expel a member who, in a moment of panic, was trying to escape a vestibule? Give me a break.”
Santos won his seat last year but saw his resumé taken apart and his background extensively questioned before being indicted on charges of money laundering and fraud. In May, he pled not guilty. Republicans sidestepped an effort to expel him from Congress, saying legal processes should run their course.
Like Ocasio-Cortez, Bowman is a prominent New York progressive.
