Shortly before Christmas, congresswoman-to-be Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez got on her moral high horse and called on her colleagues to “furlough” their pay during the partial federal government shutdown.
Next time we have a gov shutdown, Congressional salaries should be furloughed as well.
It’s completely unacceptable that members of Congress can force a government shutdown on partisan lines & then have Congressional salaries exempt from that decision.
Have some integrity. https://t.co/BgueNNjf0f
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 22, 2018
“Next time we have a gov shutdown, Congressional salaries should be furloughed as well,” she tweeted.
She added it is “completely unacceptable that members of Congress can force a government shutdown on partisan lines & then have Congressional salaries exempt from that decision.”
“Have some integrity,” she browbeat her colleagues-to-be as the seals in the media clapped.
She went on to say it’s only “fair” for elected officials to do so:
(Spoiler alert: most members of Congress are already wealthy!)
Speaking as a working class member-elect, I think it’s only fair.
It would also cause members who actually depend on their salary to think twice about leadership and take a shutdown vote more seriously. https://t.co/fSAcPAj0Xf
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 22, 2018
But her stance maybe have been for headlines that principles, as she’s refusing to say whether she’s practicing what she’s preaching.
Five days ago, the New York Post attempted to get an answer to that question.
Now that the shutdown is stretching into the new Congress, Ocasio-Cortez’s spokesman didn’t respond to numerous emails, texts and calls from The Post asking what she herself is doing.
Other New York lawmakers have already announced that they’re giving up their pay until the government resumes normal business.
Apparently the only news outlet interested in seeing whether Ocasio-Cortez’s actions meet her rhetoric, the Post tried again a few days later:
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez still won’t say whether she’s giving up her salary during the partial government shutdown — a move she previously advocated for all lawmakers.
“I’ve gotta run!” Ocasio-Cortez told The Post when asked the question Thursday on Capitol Hill.
She then scampered down a crowded hallway to get in line for her mock swearing-in with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
It’s not clear if we’ll get an answer to whether she’s sticking to her principles, or taking the money while federal workers aren’t.
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