AOC says voter intimidation at the polls has created ‘an environment of fascism’

While discussing issues surrounding the upcoming midterm elections, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she believes the United States is ‘facing an environment of fascism.’

The New York representative was joined by Rep. Jamie Raskin in a discussion with MSNBC political commentator Chris Hayes to talk about the nearing elections, recent economic turmoil and infrastructure.

Ocasio-Cortez likened alleged voter suppression in Arizona, a state in which a federal judge refused to bar an activist group from monitoring outdoor ballot boxes, to historical instances of racism.

‘We are really truly facing an environment of fascism in the United States of America,’ she said.

Last week, men in tactical gear were photographed close to a drop box in Mesa, a suburb of Phoenix. The men left when police arrived, but their presence triggered legal action as activists sought to prevent alleged intimidation of voters.

‘This type of intimidation at the polls brings us back to Jim Crow. It brings us back and harkens back to a very unique form of American apartheid that is not that long passed ago,’ AOC said, referencing the men.

Later on in the conversation, Ocasio-Cortez spoke on rising inflation rates, placing blame on the private sector. 

The country is currently experiencing 8.2 percent inflation – a fact that President Biden placated on Friday, saying that ‘it’s not record inflation anymore, I’m bringing it down.’

Inflation is down slightly from a 40-year-high in June of 9.1 percent, but 8.2 percent is still higher than at any point in the previous four decades. 

AOC said on Hayes that ‘our inflation is not going up due to government policies, inflation is going up due to Wall Street decisions.’

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Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (center) was joined by Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin (right) in a discussion with MSNBC’s Chris Hayes about issues surrounding the midterm elections

While inflation is down slightly from a 40-year-high in June of 9.1 percent, the 8.2 percent is still higher than at any point in the previous four decades

Biden got some mildly good news earlier this week when it was announced the country’s GDP grew by 2.6 percent in the third quarter of 2022, the first time it had grown since the fourth quarter of 2021

 Ocasio-Cortez said Black and Latino Americans have been ‘disproportionately targeted for incarceration’ in the last 50 years, which leads to challenges when accessing housing or employment opportunities, leading toward a ‘funnel into poverty.’

She said she thinks the Republican Party does not believe social equity is relevant to other issues.

 ‘All of these things are very interconnected, and they want us to think that they are very separate, that it’s either-or,’ she said.

 ‘Even when we talk about issues like inflation, a lot of this has to do with the massive consolidation of our markets and corporate greed.’

Rents and other essentials have drastically risen in recent months under Biden’s administration – occurrences that the president seemed oblivious to during a viral moment at a Portland ice cream parlor earlier this month where he told a reporter that the ‘economy is strong as hell.’

Raskin complemented her statements, adding that he believes Republicans are concerned about ‘replacement theory,’ or the idea that white Americans will become the largest racial voting block but not a majority. 

‘There’s a history of voter intimidation and voter discrimination and obstacles to the ballot, especially in African-American and Latino communities,’ the Maryland representative said.

‘You’ve got to view the guy showing up in camo gear and masks as part of that history as an attempt to discourage people from going out to vote.’ 

Ocasio-Cortez likened voter suppression in Arizona, a state in which a federal judge refused to bar an activist group from monitoring outdoor ballot boxes, to historical instances of racism

‘We are really truly facing an environment of fascism in the United States of America,’ she said

Raskin complemented AOC’s statements, adding that he believes Republicans are concerned about ‘replacement theory,’ or the idea that white Americans will become the largest racial voting block but not a majority

Concerning the middle class, Raskin believes Trump favors cutting taxes for the wealthiest people in the country

Raskin furthered the conversation by comparing and contrasting the current Biden Administration with former President Donald Trump.

He emphasized how the administration developed a plan for infrastructure ‘within the first month,’ while Trump did not through his four years. 

‘We did that,’ Raskin said. ‘We didn’t just talk about it, we delivered.’

Concerning the middle class, he believes Trump favors cutting taxes for the wealthiest people in the country.

‘That’s their agenda, and they do it every single time,’ Raskin said.

‘You can look at it historically – the middle class in America prospers when Democrats are in control, not Republicans.’ 

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‘We’re going to win, by the way,’ Raskin said of the upcoming midterm elections

The pair considered how a future government would function should Republican candidates win a majority of midterm elections.

Ocasio-Cortez spoke on an idea presented by current House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of criminalizing abortions at 15 weeks of pregnancy across the US.

‘Are they going to pay for all those babies?’ Raskin interrupted.

‘No, they won’t,’ Ocasio-Cortez responded. ‘They won’t.’

She added that she believes Republicans will ‘hold the entire United States’ economy hostage’ in not raising the debt limit, forcing President Joe Biden to cut Medicare.

Speaking of the upcoming elections, Raskin added: ‘We’re going to win, by the way.’