Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis fired back at New York Democratic primary winner Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Wednesday, saying the 28-year-old’s “ignorance” mixed with her socialist views is a dangerous combination.
Mr. DeSantis, a Republican who was endorsed last month by President Trump, irked Ms. Ocasio-Cortez after he was seen on camera at a campaign event dismissing her as “this girl, Ocasia-Cortez [sic], or whatever she is.”
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described socialist who took the Democratic Party by storm earlier this month after her upset primary victory against entrenched incumbent Rep. Joseph Crowley, fired back in a tweet, writing that she is a “Puerto Rican woman.”
Rep DeSantis, it seems you‘re confused as to “whatever I am.”
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) July 23, 2018
I am a Puerto Rican woman. It‘s strange you don’t know what that is, given that ~75,000 Puerto Ricans have relocated to Florida in the 10 mos since María.
But I’m sure these new FL voters appreciate your comments! https://t.co/xJlroSe5Hs
Appearing on Fox News, Mr. DeSantis chalked the quarrel up to “political correctness run amuck.”
“It’s a way to obscure scrutiny on her views, which are socialist and they’re wrapped in ignorance,” he said. “Again, she’s trying to play identity politics. I don’t care whether she Puerto Rican, whether she’s Anglo-Saxon, I don’t care whether she’s an Eskimo. Socialism doesn’t work. And it’s wrong.
“In Florida, Bill, we have more people probably than any other state who have fled socialism, places like Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and we understand socialism doesn’t work,” he said, referring to host Bill Hemmer on “America’s Newsroom.” “And when you’re justifying it by saying the unemployment rate is low because people are working multiple jobs, it just shows you don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Mr. DeSantis went on to criticize Ms. Ocasio-Cortez for a stumbling recent interview in which she described the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the “occupation of Palestine,” and then admitted when pressed to expand that she was “not the expert on geopolitics.”
“She was asked to justify those views and she couldn’t justify her views,” Mr. DeSantis said. “So if you’re slamming one of our strongest allies and if you’re doing based on really no knowledge whatsoever, I think the socialism and the ignorance is a toxic combination.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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