AOC Battles Lawmaker Twice Her Age to Lead Dems’ Trump Fightback

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is lobbying to lead the fightback against the Trump administration from Capitol Hill.

According to her colleagues, the New York congresswoman wants to be the top Democrat on the key House Oversight Committee.

But first she must get past another Democratic Party lawmaker who is more than twice her age.

Ocasio-Cortez, 35, is likely to go up against Rep. Gerry Connolly, who is 74 and recently said he’d been diagnosed with esophagus cancer.

With the party in chaos following last month’s election debacle, the contest is being cast as a litmus test over whether Democrats really want change or if it’s business as usual with seniority winning out.

NBC News reported that three Democratic members of Congress confirmed that Ocasio-Cortez would be running.

The Oversight Committee is seen as crucial by Democrats hoping to rein in the potential early excesses of the Trump-led Republicans, and if the party regains control of the House after the midterms, it will have wide powers to challenge and attempt to curb Trump.

While paying tribute to Connolly, Ocasio-Cortez confirmed her interest in the role, telling NBC: “I’m certainly interested in the position. I’m having a lot of conversations with my colleagues. And, you know, I think it’s incredibly important that we prepare ourselves fully for an incoming Trump administration, as well as fighting for everyday working Americans.

“I love Gerry,” she added, saying he was an “absolutely fantastic leader.”

Connolly insisted that he was the choice with more experience. “To me it’s not generational. It’s about experience and record and capability, and that’s how I’ve got to present it and she’s a new talent and has a lot of promise, but I’m the only one in the race... who, in fact, has led a subcommittee. I think that’s really important,” he told reporters.

The Democrats’ top position on the Oversight Committee became open with the incumbent, Jamie Raskin, likely to move across to take the lead on the Judiciary Committee.