Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her compatriots on the “Squad” have come in for some withering criticism for supporting the bill that ended the possibility of a rail strike.
The bill would force an agreement between rail carriers and the 12 unions that keep the trains running. It’s based on the Railway Labor Act of 1926, which gave the government the power to intervene in rail labor disputes if circumstances warranted it.
The four unions that refused to accept the tentative agreement that was brokered last September are livid at the White House for forcing a settlement. “This should not be a political issue; this is an issue about protecting our Workers who ensure the nation’s rail infrastructure and supply chain function as best as possible,” the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees said in a statement.
But AOC’s allies on Twitter see the vote as a betrayal of her principles.
Ilhan Omar and AOC voted in favor of smashing the rail strike
— kade doyle griffiths (@kdgriffit) November 30, 2022
Rare L, or maybe they're going Elite on us.
They've been in the House so long that they forgot they used to be workers too.
— Armored Chocobo (@ArmoredChocobo) December 1, 2022
Democrats, including 'democratic socialists' AOC and Ilhan Omar, and Republicans voted together in Congress to bar rail worker unions from carrying out their strike.
Biden and the DSA present a pro-union image to accomplish the toughest objectives of the American capitalist. pic.twitter.com/x85xV5gekr
— Politsturm International (@PolitsturmInter) December 1, 2022
One poster called AOC’s politics “performative.”
The performativeness of AOC/the Squad is very insidious, in that millions of her followers are seeing this post believing she actually stands with workers without realizing she just voted to crush the strike. https://t.co/4K6LepwJcP
— Calla (@CallaWalsh) December 1, 2022
There's no excuse for AOC and the like spending the last 2 days tweeting support for railroad workers in the face of legislation then voting to approve the contract against their will. None. Zero.
— mitch cumstein (real) (@mustachetoilet) December 1, 2022
There was an oddity when Republican Senator Marco Rubio and AOC found themselves on the same side of the issue.
“A rarity,” she said in reference to a tweet from the Florida Republican earlier this week in which he said he would object to a deal that does not reflect the wishes of the workers.
“The railways and workers should go back and negotiate a deal that the workers, not just the union bosses, will accept,” he said in a post Tuesday. “I will not vote to impose a deal that doesn’t have the support of the rail workers.”
Ocasio-Cortez retweeted the message and said, “Glad we are on the same page [regarding] railworkers’ paid sick days.”
“The House just sent over what you asked for: the full TA deal w/ sick days as supported and demanded by our railworkers. Can they count on your YES vote for the amendment?” she questioned.
The Senate voted 80-15 in favor of the agreement with the House but voted 52-43 against the seven days of paid sick leave. There will be a conference with the House to reconcile the differences and it will be interesting to see how AOC and the “Squad” vote to “smash” the strike.
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