Source: Zero Hedge
While Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez might be great sophist – skilled in the arts of dramaticism and hubris, her record on Capitol Hill leaves much to be desired according to a survey from the nonpartisan Center for Effective Lawmaking.
Of the 21 “substantive” bills she’s introduced, her legislation has received absolutely no action in committees; no floor votes and no laws, according to the Center – a joint project between Vanderbilt University and the University of Virginia, according to the New York Post.
“She introduced a lot of bills, but she was not successful at having them receive any sort of action in committee or beyond committee and if they can’t get through committee they cannot pass the House,” said Vanderbilt political scientist, Alan Wiseman, who co-directs the center.
“It’s clear that she was trying to get her legislative agenda moving and engage with the lawmaking process,” he added. “But she wasn’t as successful as some other members were — even among [other] freshmen — at getting people to pay attention to her legislation.”
When looking at the legislative effectiveness of all congressional Democrats, AOC was ranked 230th out of 240 Democrats. Among the 19 Dem lawmakers from New York state, she ranked dead last.
Among the bills that died at birth were a federal overhaul of public housing, a ban on fracking, and a mandate to provide full federal public benefits to illegal aliens.
Democratic House insiders said many of Ocasio-Cortez’s colleagues found her approach alienating. -NY Post
“Tweeting is easy, governing is hard. You need to have friends. You need to understand the committee process, you need to be willing to make sacrifices,” said one of AOC’s colleagues. “Her first day in Congress … she decided to protest outside of Nancy Pelosi’s office.”
Another Democratic insider who worked with AOC in the New York delegation told the Post that “legislation was never her focus. It was media and narrative.”
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Brooklyn/Staten Islannd) told the Post “Her ludicrous policy ideas would destroy our country — Americans should be thankful she’s not effective.”
Oddly, AOC may be trying to curry favor with fellow Democrats – having donated $5,000 to several vulnerable House Democrats has “raised awkward questions among her colleagues as some swing-district Democrats fret over whether to return her money before the GOP can turn it into an attack ad,” according to Politico.
And while Ocasio-Cortez may be bad at lawmaking, her fellow “Squad” members were a bit more productive – with Rep. Ilhan Omar sponsoring 33 bills (which also went nowhere), while Rep. Rashida Tlaib saw three of her ‘substantive’ bills advance into committee, with one even becoming law.
