Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is pointing a finger at her own party after a key provision to help Americans during the pandemic came to an end.
The nation’s moratorium on evictions expired as the month of July ended, and while some members of the Democratic leadership have blamed Republicans for opposing the measure, the Bronx congresswoman believes that her own party deserves much of the responsibility. It is the latest time that Ocasio-Cortez has called Democrats to task, especially the more conservative members who have often opposed progressive measures.
Relief Program Comes To An End
As the USA Today reported, the Democratic-controlled House adjourned their session last week without a measure to extend the moratorium first put in place to help Americans impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The extension has been a priority for Ocasio-Cortez and other progressives, and many were pointing fingers as it came to an end. The move comes after some wider measures to extend COVID-19 relief were put on the back burner and others — including monthly stimulus payments — were outright rejected.
Pointing Fingers
While some Democrats claimed that the GOP was to blame for the end of the eviction moratorium, Ocasio-Cortez believed that her party could have pushed it through. As USA Today noted, she claimed that "there was frankly a handful of conservative Democrats in the House that threatened to get on planes rather than hold this vote."
Though the moratorium has come to an end, the federal government has put in place other relief programs both for renters and homeowners who have been unable to make mortgage or rent payments.
Biden Administration In Crosshairs
Ocasio-Cortez also put some of the blame on President Joe Biden, saying the White House could have stepped up to publicly support the program but got nothing in return. Without leadership at the top, Democrats in the House were not able to unite around maintaining the relief measure, she said.
"We asked the Biden administration for their stance, and they were not being really forthright about that advocacy and that request until the day before the House adjourned," she said, via USA Today. "The House was put into a needlessly difficult situation."
Breaking With Biden
This is not the first time that Ocasio-Cortez has publicly criticized Biden. Back in June, she called out the administration’s approach to the surge in migrants at the border after Vice President Kamala Harris publicly told migrants not to travel to the United States. Ocasio-Cortez said this was the wrong approach, noting that it was a legal right for them to travel to the U.S. border to seek asylum.
"We can’t help set someone’s house on fire and then blame them for fleeing," she tweeted.
