AOC chief of staff confirms: Green New Deal was not really about the climate

The chief of staff for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stated that her signature Green New Deal was not really about saving the planet after all.

In a report by the Washington Post, Saikat Chakrabarti revealed that “it wasn’t originally a climate thing at all … we really think of it as a how-do-you-change-the-entire-economy thing.”

The revelation came during a conversation with Sam Ricketts, climate director for presidential candidate Jay Inslee. Chakrabarti further told Ricketts of the Green New Deal, “I think … it’s dual. It is both rising to the challenge that is existential around climate and it is building an economy that contains more prosperity. More sustainability in that prosperity — and more broadly shared prosperity, equitability and justice throughout.”

Chakrabarti further said of Ricketts’ climate plans with Inslee, who has campaigned almost exclusively on environmental issues, “I’ll be honest, my view is I still think you guys aren’t going big enough.”

AOC had previously tweeted that “@JayInslee’s climate plan is the most serious + comprehensive one to address our crisis in the 2020 field.”

.@JayInslee’s climate plan is the most serious + comprehensive one to address our crisis in the 2020 field.

It meets key marks:
✅ Big enough
✅ Fast enough
✅ Economically stimulating for working people
✅ Acknowledges injustice + w/ an eye to make communities whole https://t.co/C7nyEsdUxk

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 18, 2019

The Green New Deal itself was fraught with complications in its February roll-out, which included confusing language and contradictions in the “Frequently Asked Question” section. Now-withdrawn statements that were widely shared with media and posted online claimed the Green New Deal would provide “economic security for all who are unable or unwilling to work” and called for “a full transition off fossil fuels and zero greenhouse gases.”

The FAQ also claimed, “We set a goal to get to net-zero, rather than zero emissions, in 10 years because we aren’t sure that we’ll be able to fully get rid of farting cows and airplanes that fast.”

Democratic Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, who is a lead co-sponsor of the Green New Deal, said of the roll-out fumble, “I’m familiar with the fact sheet. But again, it’s separate from the resolution, all right? The resolution is really what the document is that I was speaking to today … That’s the key document. That’s what you should focus on. Focus on the resolution.” AOC later blamed the FAQ on an unnamed aide, saying “I definitely had a staffer that had a really bad day at work.”

The Green New Deal, which some estimated could cost upwards of $93 trillion to enact, also promised “economic prosperity for all.” The resolution was soundly defeated in the Senate in March.

In a video from 2018, Chakrabarti promoted his recently elected boss’ agenda in Congress while wearing a T-shirt that featured the face of Subhas Chandra Bose, who collaborated with both Hitler and Imperial Japan during World War II.