Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has become something of a rising star in the Democratic Party in recent months. A grassroots campaign helped her beat 10-term incumbent Joe Crowley in New York’s 14th district primary, and earlier in the month, she was officially elected to represent the district in the United States House of Representatives.
Ocasio-Cortez has been vocal about her support for Medicare for All, taking action to fight climate change, and a number of social safety net programs. Earlier in the week, she announced she’s leery about the state of New York giving a huge tax subsidy to Amazon to bring a corporate campus to Queens.
The representative has already been in Washington for freshman photo shoots and is getting ready to officially take over in early 2019, and apparently, one person wasn’t a fan of how she dressed on Thursday. A conservative reporter, Eddie Scarry, tweeted out a picture of Ocasio-Cortez, criticizing her outfit that he thought looked too expensive for someone who claims to be from a working-class background.
“Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now,” Scarry wrote. “I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles.”
The tweet was immediately ratio’d in a matter of minutes, with more than 20,000 replies to just a few hundred retweets. Scarry got thousands upon thousands of replies calling him out for the tweet, which hits the trio of being classist, sexist, and completely unnecessary. A congressperson-elect’s wardrobe does nothing to invalidate their past, of course, nor make her a liar about her upbringing. Plus, you know, there’s no indication that Ocasio-Cortez dropped a ton of coin on this outfit, and even if she did, identifying as a democratic socialist doesn’t mean you’re not allowed to spend money on clothes.
It also doesn’t make her current rise as a young voice in the Democratic caucus any less meaningful. But Ocasio-Cortez has been a hot button issue for conservatives, many who fear her “radical” ideas will usher in new liberal goals for the Democratic party.
good, good, good, good, pic.twitter.com/EaFkEfIQYN
— Brendan Karet (@bad_takes) November 14, 2018
But none of that is important right now. Scarry’s tweet, first and foremost, gave way to a lot of jokes. A lot of people immediately made the text of the tweet a joke convention on the social media platform, to great success.
Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now. I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles. pic.twitter.com/Ct0gCsgVpO
— Charlotte Wilder (@TheWilderThings) November 15, 2018
Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now. I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles. pic.twitter.com/TidcIgEm79
— Julia Moser (@juliamoserrrr) November 15, 2018
Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now. I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles. pic.twitter.com/yn7G4rgxeD
— aída chávez (@aidachavez) November 15, 2018
Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now. I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles. pic.twitter.com/reJoj1XBbU
— Kate Knibbs 🏄🏻♀️ (@Knibbs) November 15, 2018
Hill staffer sent me this pic of Ocasio-Cortez they took just now. I’ll tell you something: that jacket and coat don’t look like a girl who struggles. pic.twitter.com/UrP3uGrjVL
— julia reinstein 🚡 (@juliareinstein) November 15, 2018
Other people just noticed his last name is the same as the guy who created the Busy Town series of children’s books.
https://twitter.com/HollyAnderson/status/1063194714051174400
Scarry tried to fight back, and even sell his book to people who clearly were not a fan of his tweeting. But once Ocasio-Cortez herself got involved, the war of words was over.
If I walked into Congress wearing a sack, they would laugh & take a picture of my backside.
If I walk in with my best sale-rack clothes, they laugh & take a picture of my backside.
Dark hates light – that’s why you tune it out.
Shine bright & keep it pushing.✨ https://t.co/mRq5wn0v9A
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 15, 2018
Scarry later deleted the tweet once the ratio put him in a 20,000 reply hole, but the memory of the bad tweet will live on. He also posted a Tweet where he attempted to explain how he wasn’t criticizing her, which also got ratio’d as well. And Ocasio-Cortez then posted the deleted tweet herself.
Oh, does @eScarry think he can delete his misogyny without an apology?
I don’t think so. You’re a journalist – readers should know your bias. pic.twitter.com/2KJuiPsUR2
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 16, 2018
Ocasio-Cortez has a lot more important things to worry about than a conservative writer on Twitter, but thus far, she’s been unafraid to be vocal about the criticisms that have come her way. Doesn’t look like that’s changing anytime soon, either.