Trump stepped into the feud between Pelosi and progressive Democrats with Twitter insults


The feud between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and progressive Democratic newcomers — particularly Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) — does not seem to be subsiding. And President Trump has apparently picked a side.
The tensions have been bubbling for quite some time, but rose to the surface after a clash over a border funding bill. Pelosi called for compromise, but the progressives refused to cede any ground to the GOP. Since then, Pelosi and Ocasio-Cortez have traded barbs.
The New York Times' Maureen Dowd defended Pelosi. In a column published on Saturday she wrote that some of the progressives act as if anyone who disagrees with them is "guilty of some human failing, some impurity that is a moral evil that justifies their own venom."
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The Guardian's Arwa Mahdawi disagreed, arguing that Pelosi was focusing her criticism on the wrong crowd, as "America grows increasingly brazen in its bigotry." Mahdawi wrote that Pelosi is really just trying to maintain the status quo.
On Sunday morning another voice jumped into the debate — the president's. Trump tweeted that the progressive democratic congresswomen "should go back and help fix the the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came." He added that he's sure Pelosi "would be very happy to work out free travel arrangements."
Trump's criticisms make little sense, however, if he is indeed talking about the aforementioned congresswomen. While it's true Omar was born in Somalia, she has lived in the U.S. since age 12 and is a citizen. Meanwhile, Pressley was born in Cincinnati, Tlaib in Detroit, and Ocasio-Cortez in New York.
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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