U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) attends a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing to examine the jurisdiction of "sanctuary cities" and its impact on federal immigration policy, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 5, 2025. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura
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Ocasio-Cortez opposes cloture on the Republican spending bill for several reasons, including that voting for cloture is equivalent to voting for the bill itself, as it would end debate and allow the bill to move forward for a final vote.
Speaking with CNN's Jake Tapper on Thursday, Ocasio-Cortez reiterated her opposition and urged Democrats to join her, even if the government must shut down.
"Absolutely. And that is why House Democrats laid out a plan — as well as several Senate Democrats laid out a plan — to keep government open for another 30 days as Republicans negotiate a deal with Democrats in order to have an extended government funding bill," she said.
Tapper noted that Schumer said he will vote for cloture — to which Ocasio-Cortez publicly called out the top Senate Democrat.
"You think that's wrong?" asked Tapper.
"I believe that's a tremendous mistake," she replied, pointing to contentious town halls that GOP lawmakers have experienced in recent weeks as evidence that Americans do not support the MAGA agenda. "American people, whether they are Republicans, independents, Democrats, are up in arms about Elon Musk and the actual gutting of federal agencies across the board."
Ocasio-Cortez blasted the GOP's funding bill, saying it "codifies much of this chaos that Elon Musk is wreaking havoc on the federal government."
"It completely eliminates Congressional authorities in order to review these impulsive Trump tariffs that he's switching on and off . And on top of that, for folks that are concerned about the effectiveness of government, this Republican extreme spending bill removes all the guardrails and all of the accountability measures to ensure that money is being spent in the way that Congress has directed it's being spent," she railed.
Ocasio-Cortez called it "unthinkable" that Senate Democrats would vote to "hand the few pieces of leverage that we have away for free" when their constituents want them to protect social programs such as Medicaid and Social Security.
After Ocasio-Cortez advocated for an alternative 30-day stopgap bill to keep the government open, she implored her colleagues to heed her warning.
"I cannot urge enough how bad of an idea it is to empower and enable Donald Trump and Elon Musk in this moment. It is dangerous and it is reckless," she said.
When asked if she thought Schumer was a "weak leader" for supporting cloture, Ocasio-Cortez chose her words carefully.
"I think that that would be a mistake," she reiterated. "We have time between now and tomorrow. And I hope that individuals who are considering that reconsider it. I genuinely do."
