At the same time, Biden’s 2020 announcement was met with a series of congressional endorsements.
It didn’t take long for supporters and critics to file into their respective camps following Joe Biden formally announcing his candidacy for president Thursday morning.
Justice Democrats, the liberal group that helped Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rise to prominence within the progressive wing of the Democratic Party and become the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, immediately labeled the former vice president as a “centrist” who poses a threat to their agenda.
« While we’re going to support the Democratic nominee, we can’t let a so-called ‘centrist’ like Biden divide the Democratic Party and turn it into the party of ‘No, we can’t,' » said Justice Democrats Executive Director Alexandra Rojas in a statement. « The old guard of the Democratic Party failed to stop Trump, and they can’t be counted on to lead the fight against his divide-and-conquer politics today. The party needs new leadership with a bold vision capable of energizing voters in the Democratic base who stayed home in 2016. »
The grassroots organization’s main quarrels with Biden are his stances on Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, free college tuition and mass incarceration, all topics that more left-leaning candidates have addressed.
