Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez celebrated Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's departure from the Democratic Party by saying that it opened up the opportunity for another party member to win her seat in Congress.
Ocasio-Cortez criticized Sinema after she announced she would change her party affiliation from Democrat to Independent amid ongoing tensions with her congressional caucus. In addition, the Arizona senator criticized the country's two-party system of government:
I am committed to being independent and working with anyone to achieve lasting results. I committed I would not demonize people I disagreed with, engage in name-calling, or get distracted by political drama.
Americans are told that we have only two choices, Democrats or Republicans and that we must generally subscribe to the political views held by the parties, views that have become increasingly close to the extremes (...) I have joined the growing number of Arizonans who reject party politics by declaring my independence from the broken partisan system in Washington and formally registering as an Arizona Independent.
"People deserve more"
Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitter to give her opinion on her former colleague's statement. She stated that Sinema lacks firm principles and does not offer "a single value or concrete policy that she believes in."
Not once in this long soliloquy does Sinema offer a single concrete value or policy she believes in. She lays out no goals for Arizonans, no vision, no commitments.
It's "no healthcare, just vibes" for Senate.
People deserve more. Grateful this race & nomination has opened up. https://t.co/qWvuKCT50r
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 9, 2022
She went on to acknowledge that she was "grateful that this race and nomination has opened up."
According to a statement from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, although Sinema is now an independent, she will still keep her committee assignments:
She asked me to keep her committee assignments and I agreed (...) Kyrsten is independent, she has always been.
