Will Pete Aguilar Move From The Inland Empire To The Bronx To Primary Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez? Starbucks Guy Will Pay For The Moving Van

One of the Republican stand up comedians MSNBC has helped transform into a trusted voice among Trump-hating Democrats, former McCain chief strategist Steve Schmidt, is running Starbucks Guy's campaign strategy now. As violently anti-progressive as he is violently anti-Trumpanzee, Schmidt is running around telling everyone who will listen that "Schultz could be the fail-safe plan in the event Democrats nominate a far-left candidate in 2020." Schmidt, predictably, is trying to insert a narrative into the political zeitgeist where "the Democratic Party nominates someone who is so far to the left that it guarantees Trump a reelection. And at that point, the only person who would theoretically be able to stop Trump from a second term is a centrist candidacy of someone like Schultz." Every poll shows Bernie and Elizabeth Warren, presumably the targets of Schmidt's ire, beating Trump, Bernie by a lot.

Bernie, responding to a report in Politico about Wall Street's anyone-but-Bernie attitude, wrote that "Wall Street is terrified of us running for president again-- and, frankly, they should be. Ours is one of the few campaigns that wouldn’t beg them for money and would actually rein in their reckless behavior."

Meanwhile Team Starbucks Guy is trying to turn AOC into their campaign piñata. Schultz would run as a Democrat except he can't because he doesn’t like Ocasio-Cortez’s proposal to slap a 70-percent marginal tax rate on income above $10 million. "I respect the Democratic Party. I no longer feel affiliated because I don't know their views represent the majority of Americans. I don't think we want a 70 percent income tax in America." Only if that was the view of most congressional Democrats! About 60% of Americans do, albeit not billionaires like Starbucks Guy. He actually said "I believe that if I ran as a Democrat, I would have to say things that I know in my heart I do not believe, and I would have to be disingenuous." That kind of sentiment should disqualify him for anyone who wants a person of character as president.

In fact, Starbucks Guy will be delighted when he learns that the New Dems and Blue Dogs from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party are already secretly plotting to destroy Ocasio politically and drive her out of Congress. The Hill's Scott Wong refuses to identify who but reported Tuesday that some Democrats in Congress "are discussing recruiting a primary challenger to run against the social media sensation. At least one House Democrat has been privately urging members of the New York delegation to recruit a local politician from the Bronx or Queens to challenge Ocasio-Cortez."

“What I have recommended to the New York delegation is that you find her a primary opponent and make her a one-term congressperson,” the Democratic lawmaker, who requested anonymity, told The Hill. “You’ve got numerous council people and state legislators who’ve been waiting 20 years for that seat. I’m sure they can find numerous people who want that seat in that district.”

The New York delegation has eyed Ocasio-Cortez with skepticism ever since last summer when the 29-year-old self-described democratic socialist shocked the political world and defeated then-Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-NY) in what many thought would be a sleepy primary race. Crowley, a Queens powerbroker and affable House Democratic Caucus chairman, had been considered a possible future Speaker.

Many New York and Congressional Black Caucus lawmakers were also furious with Ocasio-Cortez after a recent Politico report stated she and the grass-roots group aligned with her, Justice Democrats, were considering backing a primary challenge to fellow New York Democrat Hakeem Jeffries, a Black Caucus member and establishment insider who succeeded Crowley as caucus chairman.

...No potential challengers to Ocasio-Cortez have yet emerged. But one New York political insider noted that the Queens and Bronx district is home to many ambitious pols who are close to Crowley and don’t like that a political outsider took his seat.

“She’s pissing off a lot of people and has probably made a lot of enemies. … A lot of people who are furious with her are Joe’s allies, including some named Crowley,” said the insider, referring to Crowley’s cousin, Elizabeth Crowley, a former New York City councilwoman. “She is a woman. She’s been moving more to the left. She would be someone interesting.”

Elizabeth Crowley, 41, did not return a request for comment, but she has previously said she’s eyeing a bid for Queens borough president in 2021.  She lives in a neighboring Queens district.

...Of all people, Ocasio-Cortez would not complain if she gets a primary challenger, her spokesman said.

“We believe in primaries as an idea. We’re not upset by the idea of being primaried. We are not going to go out there being anti-primary-- they are good for party,” said Corbin Trent, a campaign spokesman for Ocasio-Cortez and a co-founder of Justice Democrats.

“If voters in the district feel that they can be better represented, that will be their choice on primary day,” he continued. “In the meantime, we’re going to be doing our dead-level best to make sure we are representing the needs and the will of our constituents.”

Justice Democrats spokesman Waleed Shahid predicted a lopsided defeat for whoever tries to take on Ocasio-Cortez.

“Considering she’s more popular and well-known than some of the Democratic presidential contenders, I think whoever challenges her will lose by huge margins,” Shahid said. “It’s a quick way for some D.C. and Wall Street consultants to make some easy money.”

The Hon. Rep. Pete Aguilar (New Dem-CA), high on coke and booze, hates AOC

But it’s not just Black Caucus members she has rubbed the wrong way. Ocasio-Cortez, whose mother was born in Puerto Rico, has also annoyed members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus by targeting one of their own: Cuellar. Earlier this month, she appeared in a Justice Democrats promotional video with her spokesman, Corbin, and her chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, touting a program recruiting progressive insurgents to run for Congress.

Justice Democrats is currently searching for a progressive to launch a primary challenge against Cuellar. Hispanic Caucus members aren’t happy about those efforts but say they are taking a wait-and-see approach before intervening with Ocasio-Cortez, who joined the caucus this month.

“We’re going to protect our members and we’re going to protect our own. Full stop,” said centrist Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), a former whip for the Hispanic Caucus. “There are plenty of [swing] races and seats that we can play in, and we want to devote our resources to that.”

Aguilar, a worthless coke freak and an idiot-- see photo above; he was sooooooo high-- doesn't belong in Congress. He would also make a great primary target for progressive reformers. He's one of the most anti-progressive Democrats in Congress, representing corrupt national special interests in a bright blue district where Hillary eviscerated Trump 57.7-36.6% and where the PVI is D+8. ProgressivePunch rates him a solid "F" and he's generally considered one of the House's biggest sleaze bags. Voters in San Bernardino, Upland, Alta Loma, Colton, Loma Linda, Redlands and Rancho Cucamonga deserve a choice. Blue America has only endorsed a tiny handful of incumbents running for reelection. Obviously Pete Aguilar isn't among them. But Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is. If you'd like to send her a message of support for the great work she's doing in Congress, please click on the Blue America 2020 thermometer on the right and chip in $20.20 to her reelection campaign.