AOC and Joe Biden Are Officially Feuding

Folks, we got a live one here. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Joe Biden are in the middle of a multi-day feud over climate change.

The story began last week, when Reuters spoke on the record to an adviser to Biden’s campaign who said it was essential to pursue a “middle ground” on climate change policies. Reuters also spoke to an anonymous Biden adviser who said that his climate plan could include “nuclear energy and fossil fuel options like natural gas and carbon capture technology.”

Biden’s camp issued a broad denial of the story, though without pointing to any specifics about what exactly Reuters had gotten wrong. Nevertheless, the sight of a Biden adviser discussing a “middle ground” struck many people as quite alarming, given that we are far, far, far past the point where a “middle ground” on climate change will do anything but send millions to their deaths. One of these people was Ocasio-Cortez, who tweeted about it.

On Monday night, Ocasio-Cortez appeared to ramp up her attack on Biden’s climate plans, though she didn’t mention him by name. Speaking at an event for the Green New Deal in Washington, she condemned “conservatives” in both parties who were holding up meaningful progress on climate change, and specifically attacked the notion of a “middle of the road” approach.

Over to Biden, who has scrambled to defend his environmental bona fides in the last few days. He told reporters in New Hampshire on Tuesday—while subtly wearing a sticker that read “Protect People, Not Polluters”—that Ocasio-Cortez was just ignorant about his record.

How will AOC respond? Stay tuned!