'Squad' Member Insists There Will Be 'No Return to Normal'
Democratic dissonance has been put proudly on display by one member of the House “squad” who has no interest in two key pieces of President-elect Joe Biden’s platform — unity and restoration.
Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts tweeted her commitment to overturning society on Thursday.
“There will be no reset button. No return to normal. The status quo was unjust in the first place,” she wrote.
There will be no reset button. No return to normal. The status quo was unjust in the first place.
— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) January 15, 2021
That message carries a very different connotation than a tweet from Biden four days prior, when the president-elect discussed putting what he considers to be normal back in place.
“The work of the next four years must be the restoration of democracy and the recovery of respect for the rule of law, and the renewal of a politics that’s about solving problems — not stoking the flames of hate and chaos,” Biden wrote.
The work of the next four years must be the restoration of democracy and the recovery of respect for the rule of law, and the renewal of a politics that’s about solving problems — not stoking the flames of hate and chaos.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) January 11, 2021
However, Pressley said that she will only accept unity in a specific context — one that is focused on the African-American community.
“I am certainly not interested in unity that is at the expense of my liberation,” said @AyannaPressley citing generations of policy that has harmed Black people. More from a talk on the impact of women on US elections: past, present & future @MAAHMuseum >> https://t.co/A1CTa6Sjjy pic.twitter.com/C4meNohKvy
— GBH Forum Network (@GBHForumNetwork) January 13, 2021
“I am certainly not interested in unity that is at the expense of my liberation,” she said at a Dec. 2 speaking engagement with the Museum of African American History in Nantucket, Massachusetts, in their video series “Race in the Public Dialogue.”
The representative’s in-crowd, also known as the “squad,” has pushed against more moderate Democrats in the past year — particularly following the racial uproar last summer — in an effort to implement more progressive and socialist policies.
“Unity is not the goal. Justice is,” Pressley additionally told “The New Yorker Radio Hour” last month.
Progressives, more and more, are calling for action on their agenda.
Bernie telling the truth and reaffirming what our movements are calling for: an aggressive progressive agenda and to move FAST. Let’s not repeat the past. https://t.co/kqce7YxQ8p
— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) January 8, 2021
The House Progressive Caucus has proposed a 2021 congressional agenda that includes relief checks of $2,000 a month for everyone, regardless of immigration or any other status.
The agenda includes “banning semi-automatic weapons,” canceling medical debt, canceling up to $50,000 in student debt and providing “universal access to social safety net programs.”
Under a section entitled “Dismantle Racism, White Supremacy and Inequality in All Institutions,” progressives also are calling for “a commission on truth, racial healing, and transformation, and a commission to study and develop reparations.”
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