Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) will be hitting the campaign trail in support of Sen. Elizabeth Warren today, following her endorsement of the presidential front-runner on Wednesday.
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โI have seen Ms. Warren in small church basements and in packed gymnasiums,โ Pressley said in the video announcement. โAnd she is consistent. She never loses sight of the people. Youโve all heard about the senatorโs plansโbut hereโs the thing. Her plans are about power: who has it, who refuses to let it go, and who deserves more of it.โ
In her endorsement of Warren, Pressley emphasized a hallmark of her own campaign for congressโeffecting big structural change and effecting it now.
โFor Elizabeth and for me, power belongs in the hands of the people,โ Pressley continued. โThatโs why sheโs fighting for fundamental change that restores power to those whoโve been left behind and centers those whoโve never had access to it in the first place.โ
Many noted that in doing so, Pressley broke ranks with the rest of โthe Squadโโfour freshmen congresswomen widely regarded as the face of the Democratsโ progressive wing. Nearly a month ago, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) all endorsed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Pressley refrained from endorsing anyone at the time, saying that she had โtremendous respect for her sisters-in-serviceโ but would make her own decision. Many speculated that she would side with Warren, her home state senator. As Politico points out, the connection goes deeper than their roots in Massachusetts politics:
While her path to Congress mirrored Ocasio-Cortezโs in one respect โ both women upset longtime Democratic congressmen โ Pressley served on the Boston City Council for almost a decade before joining Congress as part of a diverse Democratic โblue waveโ in last yearโs midterms. She was a delegate for Hillary Clinton in 2016, while Ocasio-Cortez has said Sandersโ 2016 presidential run inspired her first foray into politics.
Pressleyโs endorsement is likely to fuel speculation that the congresswoman could be in the running for Warrenโs Senate seat should her White House bid be successful.
Pressley, the first black woman to represent Massachusetts in Congress, told the Associated Press this week sheโs been courted by other Democratic presidential contenders, including Sanders and Biden. As Warren tries to appeal to black voters throughout the country, Pressleyโs credibility with the Democratsโ most stalwart voting block could prove crucial.
But Pressleyโs endorsement is also a valuable reminder of the diversity of political thought in this current moment, and among black constituents historically. The Squad is a perfect example of how women of color can share similar political ideals and goals, but come to very different (and valid) conclusions about how best to achieve them. While both Sanders and Warren represent the Democratic โleft lane,โ the latter has called herself a โcapitalist to the bone.โ Sanders, meanwhile, has spent much of his career making the case for democratic socialism.ย While his policies have become more mainstream in recent years, his vision for America hinges on recognizing economic rights as human rights. Rep. Omar, in her endorsement of Sanders, emphasized this commitment to building a working-class movement in the U.S.
โThat is why he is fighting to cancel all student debt. That is why he is fighting to make all school meals universal. That is why he is fighting for a humane immigration policy that treats immigrants as human beings and not criminals. And itโs why Bernie is fighting to end our forever wars and truly prioritize human rights in our foreign policyโno matter who violates them,โ Omar said.
Pressleyโs concerns are similar; in her endorsement of Warren she cited the senatorโs plans to fight income inequality and close the racial wealth gap, as well as โtaking on the epidemic of gun violence and working to dismantle structural racism.โ
โElizabeth has made it her lifeโs work to pursue justice for working families and put economic and political power in the hands of people,โ Pressley added.โWe find ourselves in a fight for the soul of our nation, and I know Elizabeth can win it.โ
A casual stroll through the responses to Pressleyโs endorsement video shows a lot of Sanders supporters criticizing her choice, but one person who didnโt follow suit is fellow Squad member Ocasio-Cortez. She replied to Pressleyโs video with a single purple heart.
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