Ocasio-Cortez rejects support from Ted Cruz: 'You almost had me murdered'

The Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has rejected a message of support from Ted Cruz, adding the Texas senator “almost had me murdered three weeks ago”.

Cruz on Thursday had endorsed Ocasio-Cortez’s call on Twitter for a congressional hearing about the decision by the online trading platform Robinhood to restrict trading in GameStop shares. But while welcoming the chance to work across party lines on the issue, Ocasio-Cortez had harsh words for Cruz.

“I am happy to work with Republicans on this issue where there’s common ground, but you almost had me murdered 3 weeks ago so you can sit this one out,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “Happy to work w/ almost any other GOP that aren’t trying to get me killed. In the meantime if you want to help, you can resign.”

“While you conveniently talk about ‘moving on’, a second Capitol police officer lost their life yesterday in the still-raging aftermath of the attacks you had a role in,” she said. “This isn’t a joke. We need accountability, and that includes a new senator from Texas.”

Ocasio-Cortez is one of several prominent figures to publicly cast blame on Cruz for his role in fomenting the deadly violence on Capitol Hill on 6 January. Seven Democratic senators have filed a formal complaint, urging the Senate ethics committee to investigate Cruz, along with the Missouri senator Josh Hawley, because of their efforts to block the certification of Joe Biden’s election.

Hawley and Cruz were prominent among 147 Republican representatives and senators to vote against certifying the election results, even after the Capitol attack.

Five people, including a police officer, died in the unrest. At least oneof the people charged in the attack had posted death threats against Ocasio-Cortez online.

Meanwhile, lawmakers have continued to express fears for their safety amid relentless partisan friction. The House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, on Thursday said members of Congress face threats of violence from an “enemy” within and called for additional funds to protect lawmakers.

Asked to clarify what she meant, Pelosi said, “It means that we have members of Congress who want to bring guns on the floor and have threatened violence on other members of Congress. Several lawmakers who voted for this month’s House impeachment of Trump have reported receiving threats, and initial moves to enhance safety procedures have taken on clear partisan undertones. Some Republicans have loudly objected to having to pass through newly installed metal detectors before entering the House chamber, while Pelosi has proposed fining lawmakers who bypass the devices.

Cruz’s office did not immediately respond to Ocasio-Cortez’s second tweet. A Robinhood spokeswoman declined to comment on the lawmakers’ criticism.

Several lawmakers on Wednesday expressed their concerns over Robinhood’s decision to restrict trading in several social media-driven stocks that had soared this week. The issue had pit hedge funds and other short sellers against retail buyers, many motivated by commentary on sites such as Reddit.

Ro Khanna, the Democratic congressman representing the Silicon Valley region, said in a statement: “While retail trading in some cases, like on Robinhood, blocked the purchasing of GameStop, hedge funds were still allowed to trade the stock. We need more regulation and equality in the markets.”

“We’re done letting hedge fund billionaires treat the stock market like their personal playground, then taking their ball home as soon as they lose.”

The US representative Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat, called the restriction “beyond absurd”.

Tlaib urged on Twitter that Congress “have a hearing on Robinhood’s market manipulation. They’re blocking the ability to trade to protect Wall St. hedge funds, stealing millions of dollars from their users to protect people who’ve used the stock market as a casino for decades.”

Ocasio-Cortez said the House financial services committee investigation should not be limited to Robinhood but “should examine any retail services freezing stock purchases in the course of potential investigations – especially those allowing sales, but freezing purchases”.

Source: Elections - theguardian.com