Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) nominated Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and did not mention Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden as she delivered a 1-minute speech during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) on Tuesday evening.
The first-term congresswoman spoke to nominate Sanders before Biden was confirmed as the partys official candidate.
“I want to thank everyone working towards a better, more just future for our country and our world,” Ocasio-Cortez said, speaking after the Vermont senator was formally nominated by Bob King, a labor activist and lawyer.
Her movement is “striving to recognize and repair the wounds of racial injustice, colonization, misogyny, and homophobia,” Ocasio-Cortez asserted, adding that it “realizes the unsustainable brutality of an economy that rewards explosive inequalities of wealth for the few at the expense of long term stability for the many.”
Ocasio-Cortez faced criticism on social media about why her speech didnt make mention of Biden and instead focused on Sanders. She explained that it was part of the DNCs procedure.
“If you were confused, no worries! Convention rules require roll call & nominations for every candidate that passes the delegate threshold. I was asked to 2nd the nom for Sen. Sanders for roll call. I extend my deepest congratulations to @JoeBiden – lets go win in November,” she wrote.
Before that, the congresswomans supporters were upset that she was given a 60-second speaking time slot after some Republican critics of President Donald Trump such as Ohio Gov. John Kasich were allowed to speak.
“People on the extreme, whether theyre on the left or on the right, they get outsized publicity that tends to define their party,” Kasich told BuzzFeed News about her comments. “You know, I listen to people all the time make these statements, and because AOC gets outsized publicity doesnt mean she represents the Democratic Party. Shes just a part, just some member of it.”
