As Donald Trump got ready for his rally in Michigan on Thursday night, the president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., took to the stage and criticized freshman New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal, as well as a well-publicized gaffe the congresswoman had made during a previous live stream chat on social media.
“Think about the fact that every mainstream leading Democratic contender is taking the advice of a freshmen congresswoman who three weeks ago didn’t know the three branches of government,” Trump Jr. said, as quoted by USA Today .
Talking about Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal, a broad proposal designed to fight the negative effects of climate change and encourage a shift away from fossil fuel usage, while also addressing various “social justice” issues such as healthcare, housing, and education, Trump Jr. referred to the bill as “scary” as he continued addressing his father’s supporters. This reportedly sparked a series of “AOC sucks!” chants from the assembled crowd.
“You guys, you’re not very nice and neither is what that policy would do to this country,” the presidential son continued.
According to The New York Post , Donald Trump Jr.’s comments about Ocasio-Cortez previously not knowing the three branches of government were a call-back to remarks she made during an Instagram live stream chat in November, where she talked about working hard to “make sure we take back all three chambers of Congress.” She then corrected herself, referring to the presidency, the Senate, and the House of Representatives as the three “chambers” of government, instead of the three branches — executive, legislative, and judicial.
Dems introduce climate change legislation after Senate votes down Green New Deal https://t.co/z7PqrNpyQN pic.twitter.com/N0IzKjOsz9
— The Hill (@thehill) March 28, 2019
The New York Post also compared the “AOC sucks!” chants from the president’s supporters to the anti-Hillary Clinton chants of “Lock her up!” that were a staple of Donald Trump’s rallies during his 2016 presidential campaign. This was a reference to the allegations that Clinton used a private email server to conduct official business while serving as secretary of state.
As previously reported by The Guardian , Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal was defeated earlier this week via a 57-0 vote in the Senate. The freshman congresswoman’s proposal was voted down by all 53 Republican senators, three Democrats, and one independent, Maine Senator Angus King.
Thursday’s event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, marked the president’s first campaign rally since Attorney General William Barr summarized special counsel Robert Mueller’s recently-concluded investigation and announced that the probe had found no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian officials to influence the results of the 2016 presidential election. Per BBC News , Trump called the Mueller investigation a “hoax” while speaking at the rally, further calling it an attempt on the part of the Democratic Party to “[frame] innocent Americans.”
