Opinion | Sexism inherent in Trump campaign
Katie Reul, News Editor
President Donald Trump levied a blow to New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) at the Oct. 22 presidential debate, stating “AOC plus three … know nothing about the climate” – a bold accusation given the President’s own contradictory views on the subject, often dismissing global warming as a hoax.
Trump’s comment to Ocasio-Cortez, on the surface, was a jab at the similarities between Biden’s plan for a “Clean Energy Revolution and Environmental Justice” and Ocasio-Cortez’ Green New Deal, which both commit to 100% clean energy by 2050. But, more deeply, it demonstrates the sexist undertones within our democracy.
“It’s actually AOC plus 115, because that’s how many House and Senate members have cosponsored the most ambitious climate legislation in American history,” Ocasio-Cortez clapped back at Trump via Twitter.
The original reference to “plus three” is assumed to be an implicit attack toward Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar and Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley. The three women of color are also recognized within their districts as pioneers in intersectional justice, yet were referred to as an afterthought in Trump’s haphazard grouping of the Congresswomen.
As the youngest woman in American history to serve in congress, Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described democratic socialist, now boasts a wide following of young, progressive voters as well as the endorsement of California Sen. Bernie Sanders and the Democratic Socialists of America. Her shared values with Sanders on issues such as universal healthcare and the abolishment of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement are a direct counter to the Trump administration’s efforts to repeal Obamacare and increase immigrant detention by creating over 40 new detention centers since 2017.
Socialism is the forsaken word that the contemporary Republican Party avoids at all costs. Needless to say, it rings true that the Trump administration would treat Ocasio-Cortez and her political beliefs with as little regard as they do any concept of political deviation other than the current system in place.
The reasoning is simple: on a macro level, this system continues to benefit the white, the wealthy and the patriarchy – three categories Ocasio-Cortez blatantly defies in her existence. On a deeper level, Trump’s efforts to demonize Ocasio-Cortez are further representative of an attempt to pin Democratic women of color as radical leftists. There’s a word for that: discrimination.
The idea is nothing new. Trump’s attempts to create political discord surrounding the validity of congresswomen Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, Omar and Pressley connect back to July 2019, when he indirectly tweeted at them to “go back” to their countries even though all of the women possess U.S. citizenship. Trump’s unfiltered communication with fellow members of Congress, and more broadly, the American people, is indicative of perhaps the most catastrophic facet of the Trump administration: its capability to stoke the flames of fear in the public, using mistrust of the media and ego-driven politics.
The easiest way for the current presidential administration to obtain a goal of self-servient desire is to minimize minorities through ostracization in the media – a recycled gambit used by Trump from 2011 to 2016 to try to evoke controversy surrounding former President Obama’s American citizenship through racial profiling. The same applies even now as Trump competes in the 2020 presidential election against Democratic candidate Joe Biden. While Trump cannot incite the same xenophobia towards the white, male Democratic nominee, he can instead direct skepticism toward the people of color on Biden’s staff in an attempt to invalidate the campaign from the inside out.
At this point, the behavior is not singular to Trump, but characteristic to social conservatives within the GOP. Other examples of similar unprofessionalism by male politicians toward their female counterparts have been seen within Congress, like when Florida Rep. Ted Yoho accosted Ocasio-Cortez with profanity on the Capitol steps.
Though the lingering residue of the patriarchy is an inescapable facet of day-to-day life, our country’s politicians should be held to a certain standard of sophistication, consciously upholding the same values of equality that they preach through their legislation.