Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., pounced after top Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel was caught on a hot mic telling local leaders at a protest he only cared about addressing protesters “because of the primary” election.
Engel was caught on video talking with Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz at a local protest over George Floyd’s death, asking if he could give a speech.
“Please bear with me, I’ll announce everybody,” Diaz told Engel. “I appreciate you coming, but … I gotta go down the list and it’s just too many folks here.”
“if I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care,” Engel responds.
“Say that again?” Diaz is heard asking.
“If I… if I didn’t have a primary, I wouldn’t care,” Engel repeats himself, visably upsetting Diaz who is a person of color.
Our cameras were rolling as @RepEliotEngel asked BP @rubendiazjr if he could speak at a press event this afternoon and was heard saying “if I didn’t have a primary I wouldn’t care.” (Cont…) @News12BX pic.twitter.com/7IeK5PgeNg
— Kurt Semder (@KurtSemder) June 2, 2020
Ocasio-Cortez pounced and quickly endorsed the Democratic primary challenger of the veteran House committee chairman. Engel’s New York district is adjacent to her own, making the far-left freshman’s latest challenge to party leaders personal.
Ocasio-Cortez, who in less than two years has shot from obscurity to one of Congress’ most recognized names and faces, used a series of tweets late Wednesday to announce she was endorsing Jamaal Bowman, an educator, over Engel.
That meant Ocasio-Cortez is trying to topple the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Engel, an establishment Democrat, is in his 16th House term and represents a district from parts of the Bronx and Westchester, next door to Ocasio-Cortez’ home base of the Bronx and Queens.
“This moment requires renewed and revitalized leadership across the country AND at the ballot box,” Ocasio-Cortez, 30, tweeted as she lent her support to Bowman.
Her announcement came during the second week of nationwide protests against the killing of black men by police officers and after President Donald Trump’s display of physical force and taunts against the demonstrators, some of whom have been violent.
She called Bowman, who is African-American, “a profound community leader.” Engel’s district has mostly black and Hispanic voters.
Ocasio-Cortez’s move also meant she was defying House Democratic leaders, who have stood behind party incumbents facing primary challengers. When she first entered Congress last year, Ocasio-Cortez and three other young freshmen women — calling themselves “The Squad” — clashed repeatedly with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., though in recent months those battles have receded.
Engel has reported raising more than $1.6 million through March, about triple Bowman’s haul. But Engel has been accused of spending insufficient time in his district, and Bowman’s challenge is considered legitimate.
Bowman claimed a fundraising bonanza this week after Engel was overheard at the hot mic.
Engel campaign spokesman Tom Watson said the lawmaker lauded “the combined skills, ethics and experience” of colleagues he said have endorsed him, including Pelosi, civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., and the Congressional Black Caucus.
Watson also provided a statement in which Engel explained his news conference remark by saying that “running for re-election, I thought it was important for people to know where I stand.”
Ocasio-Cortez has endorsed two other challengers to conservative House Democrats for this year’s elections. Marie Newman defeated Rep. Daniel Lipinski in an Illinois district south of Chicago, while Rep. Henry Cuellar defeated his Ocasio-Cortez-backed opponent, Jessica Cisneros.
A spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said the House Democrats’ political arm looks forward to Engel “continuing to serve his community for years to come.”
The district is solidly Democratic, with the primary winner all but assured of being elected in November.
The Associated Press contributed to this article