Sen. Ed Markey’s beat back upstart Rep. Joe Kennedy in a stunning win in the primary for the Markey’s Senate seat.
It broke an 80-year undefeated streak by the Kennedy’s in Massachusetts. Kennedy was supported in a huge way by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. AOC backed Markey.
Trump said, “See, even a Kennedy isn’t safe in the new Radical Left Democrat Party. Taxes up big, no 2A. Biden has completely lost control. Pelosi strongly backed the loser!”
But it was AOC who got the last laugh. She mocked Pelosi earlier after Pelosi had complained bitterly when AOC backed primary challenges only to back Kennedy’s: “No one gets to complain about primary challenges again. It seems like less a policy and more a cherry-picking activity.”
From Fox News:
The race is the latest in which highly-progressive candidates have flexed their electoral muscle in Democratic primaries. Justice Democrats, a group dedicated to helping progressives win primary challenges that backed Ocasio-Cortez in her 2018 race against former Rep. Joe Crowley, endorsed Cori Bush against Missouri Rep. Lacy Clay and Jamaal Bowman of New York against longtime Rep. Eliot Engel this year. Both Engel and Clay were endorsed by Pelosi. Both lost.
Pelosi, who has regularly fought against primary challenges against members of her own caucus, drew backlash for the endorsement, specifically from Ocasio-Cortez, who cast Markey as a champion of the progressive movement.
“No one gets to complain about primary challenges again,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “It seems like less a policy and more a cherry-picking activity.”
Pelosi defended her decision to back Kennedy, saying that she supports members of her caucus no matter what. And Markey wasn’t just backed by anti-establishment figures like Ocasio-Cortez — he was supported by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., too.
Regardless, Kennedy, as he conceded Tuesday night, appeared intent on healing any divisions within the party that may have been caused by the tense primary race.
“A few moments ago I called Sen. Markey to congratulate him and to pledge my support to him and his campaign in the months ahead.” Kennedy told supporters. “The senator is a good man. You have never heard me say otherwise.”
Notably, Kennedy’s loss ended a nearly 80-year undefeated streak for his family’s political dynasty when running for office in Massachusetts.
No one gets to complain about primary challenges again. ?
So @dccc, when can we expect you to reverse your blacklist policy against primary orgs?
Because between this & lack of care around @IlhanMN’s challenger, it seems like less a policy and more a cherry-picking activity. https://t.co/xSneSK8H2q
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 20, 2020
See, even a Kennedy isn’t safe in the new Radical Left Democrat Party. Taxes up big, no 2A. Biden has completely lost control. Pelosi strongly backed the loser! https://t.co/DKYVBpbpP7
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 2, 2020
