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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the new Congressperson from New York City who has joined Bernie Sanders as the most famous socialist in the U.S., stood against the rest of the Democratic Party and
voted against two symbolic billsto end the shutdown because they provided funds to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and border security.
"We're hearing back a lot from our local community, and they're uncomfortable with any vote on funding for ICE," she told the
New York Post.
Ocasio-Cortez's vote came three weeks after she joined every other Democrat in
voting for similar legislation on the day that Democrats took over control of the House of Representatives.
That vote was a troubling sign of how pressure to be a loyal Democrat and stay united against Trump could undermine Ocasio-Cortez's commitment to fighting to abolish ICE, one of the cornerstones of her electrifying primary campaign last year.
But her reversal this week indicates the other side of the dynamic: Ocasio-Cortez's recognition that her new national platform to project left politics rests on support among this country's new socialist movement and among her district's diverse and immigrant-heavy constituency.
Her decision to reverse her vote after hearing from immigrant justice advocates in her district is a heartening sign — and more importantly, a signal for socialists and immigrant justice activists to raise our sights about what's possible when it comes to pressuring officeholders.
We shouldn't overstate the importance of one vote against funding ICE, but Ocasio-Cortez has taken a courageous stand. That's all the more important amid new revelations of
thousands more family separations than the government has reported — which nevertheless had no seeming impact on the votes of Ocasio-Cortez's fellow Democratic House members, even those who profess to be left wing.