This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/17/podcasts/the-daily/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-coronavirus.html
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 4 | Version 5 |
|---|---|
| Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Progressivism and the Pandemic | Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Progressivism and the Pandemic |
| (14 days later) | |
| This episode was hosted by Michael Barbaro, produced by Jessica Cheung and Rachel Quester, and edited by Lisa Tobin. | This episode was hosted by Michael Barbaro, produced by Jessica Cheung and Rachel Quester, and edited by Lisa Tobin. |
| Listen and subscribe to our podcast from your mobile device:Via Apple Podcasts | Via Spotify | Via Stitcher | Listen and subscribe to our podcast from your mobile device:Via Apple Podcasts | Via Spotify | Via Stitcher |
| Eight weeks ago, the biggest news in the country was a story of political mortality. Former Vice President Joe Biden was struggling to survive a crowded and chaotic Democratic field. His losses in early primary states raised a broader question: Would centrism or progressivism dominate the future of the Democratic Party? | Eight weeks ago, the biggest news in the country was a story of political mortality. Former Vice President Joe Biden was struggling to survive a crowded and chaotic Democratic field. His losses in early primary states raised a broader question: Would centrism or progressivism dominate the future of the Democratic Party? |
| In the intervening months, the world has changed — transforming the stakes of the presidential election while morphing the party’s identity crisis into a “matter of life or death,” according to Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. | In the intervening months, the world has changed — transforming the stakes of the presidential election while morphing the party’s identity crisis into a “matter of life or death,” according to Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. |
| With Senator Bernie Sanders, her mentor and ideological inspiration, out of the presidential race, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is contending with how to advocate for progressive policies in an upended and uncertain political climate. The process of party unification will most likely require her to compromise and converse with Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, whom she has yet to meet or fully endorse. | With Senator Bernie Sanders, her mentor and ideological inspiration, out of the presidential race, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is contending with how to advocate for progressive policies in an upended and uncertain political climate. The process of party unification will most likely require her to compromise and converse with Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, whom she has yet to meet or fully endorse. |
| In the meantime, her district has become the “epicenter of the epicenter” of the pandemic in New York City, with many of her constituents being forced to work outside their homes during the crisis to deliver packages, stock grocery shelves and treat patients in hospitals. | In the meantime, her district has become the “epicenter of the epicenter” of the pandemic in New York City, with many of her constituents being forced to work outside their homes during the crisis to deliver packages, stock grocery shelves and treat patients in hospitals. |
| Today, we talk to Ms. Ocasio-Cortez about the pandemic’s disproportionate impact in impoverished communities, personality politics and the future of progressivism. | Today, we talk to Ms. Ocasio-Cortez about the pandemic’s disproportionate impact in impoverished communities, personality politics and the future of progressivism. |
| While some, like Madonna, have called the pandemic “the great equalizer,” reporting in recent weeks has revealed the ways the coronavirus is compounding existing social inequities. | While some, like Madonna, have called the pandemic “the great equalizer,” reporting in recent weeks has revealed the ways the coronavirus is compounding existing social inequities. |
| A person’s risk of infection, and the quality of their subsequent treatment, is subject to national, racial and socioeconomic realities predating the virus’s spread. The disproportionate mortality rate for black and brown Americans, the dearth of protective equipment in developing nations and celebrity access to rare and elusive tests illuminate these divides. | A person’s risk of infection, and the quality of their subsequent treatment, is subject to national, racial and socioeconomic realities predating the virus’s spread. The disproportionate mortality rate for black and brown Americans, the dearth of protective equipment in developing nations and celebrity access to rare and elusive tests illuminate these divides. |
| At home in Queens, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said, “The pandemic is not happening in a vacuum. It’s happening in a social and economic context.” In a city ravaged by the virus, few places have been hit as hard as her district, where a seven-square-mile patch of densely packed immigrant enclaves recorded more than 7,000 cases in the first weeks of the outbreak. | At home in Queens, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said, “The pandemic is not happening in a vacuum. It’s happening in a social and economic context.” In a city ravaged by the virus, few places have been hit as hard as her district, where a seven-square-mile patch of densely packed immigrant enclaves recorded more than 7,000 cases in the first weeks of the outbreak. |
| She said that while her constituents have expressed pride in their work, many struggle to feel supported by the government. “A lot of them feel like they’re just being sent in for slaughter because they are being asked to do work without the proper protections,” she said. “They’re saying, ‘You’re sending us into war without weapons.’” | She said that while her constituents have expressed pride in their work, many struggle to feel supported by the government. “A lot of them feel like they’re just being sent in for slaughter because they are being asked to do work without the proper protections,” she said. “They’re saying, ‘You’re sending us into war without weapons.’” |
| After Mr. Biden pulled ahead in the national delegate count, early post-mortems were written about Mr. Sanders’s struggling campaign. With slightly more distance, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has a few thoughts about what went wrong. | After Mr. Biden pulled ahead in the national delegate count, early post-mortems were written about Mr. Sanders’s struggling campaign. With slightly more distance, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has a few thoughts about what went wrong. |
| “Senator Sanders did very well with Latino electorates and Latino voters. You know, I think his campaign made a very strong effort to understand us,” she said. Still, this strategic bet did not translate into intersectional support. | “Senator Sanders did very well with Latino electorates and Latino voters. You know, I think his campaign made a very strong effort to understand us,” she said. Still, this strategic bet did not translate into intersectional support. |
| “I do think, clearly, there wasn’t enough work done with outreach in the black electorate — Southern black electorates in particular,” she said, noting that “obviously, South Carolina was a huge tipping point” for Mr. Biden. | “I do think, clearly, there wasn’t enough work done with outreach in the black electorate — Southern black electorates in particular,” she said, noting that “obviously, South Carolina was a huge tipping point” for Mr. Biden. |
| While Ms. Ocasio-Cortez does not believe the progressive movement hinges on one single candidate (she points to Mr. Sanders’s loss in 2016 as a moment that strengthened her wing of the party, sending a new wave of freshmen congresswomen to Capitol Hill), she does believe campaigning is inherently personality driven. | While Ms. Ocasio-Cortez does not believe the progressive movement hinges on one single candidate (she points to Mr. Sanders’s loss in 2016 as a moment that strengthened her wing of the party, sending a new wave of freshmen congresswomen to Capitol Hill), she does believe campaigning is inherently personality driven. |
| In this context, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez believes Mr. Sanders was “flawed in the sense that he did not get the nomination,” she said. “We are all flawed. There is no such thing as a flawless candidate. Joe Biden is flawed. I’m flawed. Bernie Sanders is flawed.” | In this context, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez believes Mr. Sanders was “flawed in the sense that he did not get the nomination,” she said. “We are all flawed. There is no such thing as a flawless candidate. Joe Biden is flawed. I’m flawed. Bernie Sanders is flawed.” |
| Even before the pandemic, progressive policies such as single-payer health care, robust action on climate change and student debt cancellation polled high among Democratic voters, drawing majority support in some states even as more moderate candidates won delegates. | Even before the pandemic, progressive policies such as single-payer health care, robust action on climate change and student debt cancellation polled high among Democratic voters, drawing majority support in some states even as more moderate candidates won delegates. |
| Now, as Mr. Biden is considering policy overtures to unite the party, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez hopes that support for Medicare for All and the introduction of more robust social safety nets will continue to rise — and that in the process other items on the progressive agenda will be mainstreamed. | Now, as Mr. Biden is considering policy overtures to unite the party, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez hopes that support for Medicare for All and the introduction of more robust social safety nets will continue to rise — and that in the process other items on the progressive agenda will be mainstreamed. |
| “It’s not just about this boding well for progressives,” she said, adding that it’s about having a planet to live on “in 10 years or in 20 years. It’s about making sure that babies don’t get put in a cage again. To make sure that we end the scourge of mass incarceration.” | “It’s not just about this boding well for progressives,” she said, adding that it’s about having a planet to live on “in 10 years or in 20 years. It’s about making sure that babies don’t get put in a cage again. To make sure that we end the scourge of mass incarceration.” |
| Ms. Ocasio-Cortez worries these issues will slip through the cracks as Mr. Biden campaigns in “affluent suburban” constituencies essential for a path to the presidency. While she said that her team and Mr. Biden’s teams have now been in touch after she revealed she had never spoken to the former vice president, she is waiting to fully endorse him. | Ms. Ocasio-Cortez worries these issues will slip through the cracks as Mr. Biden campaigns in “affluent suburban” constituencies essential for a path to the presidency. While she said that her team and Mr. Biden’s teams have now been in touch after she revealed she had never spoken to the former vice president, she is waiting to fully endorse him. |
| “Was this the November ballot that I wanted? No,” she said. “But I know that there’s a difference between our communities at least having a fighting chance and having no chance.” | “Was this the November ballot that I wanted? No,” she said. “But I know that there’s a difference between our communities at least having a fighting chance and having no chance.” |
| Ultimately, she believes that there is room for compromise — and that the election can go beyond “harm reduction” to offer hope. “This pandemic has just exposed us,” she said. “People tell me, ‘I cannot believe I didn’t see this before. I cannot believe I didn’t see this before. I’m just thankful that people are seeing it now.” | Ultimately, she believes that there is room for compromise — and that the election can go beyond “harm reduction” to offer hope. “This pandemic has just exposed us,” she said. “People tell me, ‘I cannot believe I didn’t see this before. I cannot believe I didn’t see this before. I’m just thankful that people are seeing it now.” |
| Background reading: | Background reading: |
| Here’s a look inside the crisis in Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s district. | Here’s a look inside the crisis in Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s district. |
| In a recent interview with The Times, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez revealed that she had never met Mr. Biden. Although she intends to support him, she said that the “process of coming together should be uncomfortable for everyone involved.” | In a recent interview with The Times, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez revealed that she had never met Mr. Biden. Although she intends to support him, she said that the “process of coming together should be uncomfortable for everyone involved.” |
| Tune in, and tell us what you think. Email us at thedaily@nytimes.com. Follow Michael Barbaro on Twitter: @mikiebarb. And if you’re interested in advertising with “The Daily,” write to us at thedaily-ads@nytimes.com. | Tune in, and tell us what you think. Email us at thedaily@nytimes.com. Follow Michael Barbaro on Twitter: @mikiebarb. And if you’re interested in advertising with “The Daily,” write to us at thedaily-ads@nytimes.com. |
| “The Daily” is made by Theo Balcomb, Andy Mills, Lisa Tobin, Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Annie Brown, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Larissa Anderson, Wendy Dorr, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Jonathan Wolfe, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, Adizah Eghan, Kelly Prime, Julia Longoria, Sindhu Gnanasambandan, M.J. Davis Lin, Austin Mitchell, Sayre Quevedo, Neena Pathak, Dan Powell, Dave Shaw, Sydney Harper, Daniel Guillemette, Hans Buetow, Robert Jimison, Mike Benoist and Bianca Giaever. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Mikayla Bouchard, Lauren Jackson, Julia Simon, Mahima Chablani and Nora Keller. | “The Daily” is made by Theo Balcomb, Andy Mills, Lisa Tobin, Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Annie Brown, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Larissa Anderson, Wendy Dorr, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Jonathan Wolfe, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, Adizah Eghan, Kelly Prime, Julia Longoria, Sindhu Gnanasambandan, M.J. Davis Lin, Austin Mitchell, Sayre Quevedo, Neena Pathak, Dan Powell, Dave Shaw, Sydney Harper, Daniel Guillemette, Hans Buetow, Robert Jimison, Mike Benoist and Bianca Giaever. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Mikayla Bouchard, Lauren Jackson, Julia Simon, Mahima Chablani and Nora Keller. |