It all started with an op-ed in the New York Times, floating the idea that "Democrats need fresh, bold leadership for the 2024 presidential race.  That can't be Biden."

I wrote about that here.

We know that whatever appears in the Times is carefully vetted by the Washington Democrat establishment.  The op-ed was the establishment telling Biden that his record is irredeemable, and he needs to go gently into the night.

It was also a notification to other Democrats that they could now begin to demonstrate signs of rebellion during the midterm campaign.

Enter the Squad's ringleader, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the self-serving and perpetually virtue-signaling congresswoman from New York with the perennially bewildered expression.  She is also a word salad chef.  She may not be as prolific and catastrophic as the foremost world salad chef, Kamala Harris, but give her time.

AOC appeared on CNN's State of the Union over the weekend to talk about a range of issues.  As the interview was in its concluding moments, host Dana Bash asked her if she would endorse Joe Biden in 2024.

AOC almost seemed as though she was going to give a direct answer.  She wasn't.

She began with "if the president chooses to run again in 2024," and she then caught herself and broke into a giggle.  She continued on a different trajectory and claimed to be "focused on winning this majority right now ... and preserving a majority this year in 2022."  She added that "we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." 

Dana Bash didn't look too pleased by this evasion; she probably still has hope in Biden.  Like a schoolteacher who was not going to allow her petulant student to slyly dodge her question, Bash pressed AOC, pointing out that she didn't answer "yes."

AOC again skirted the question with the following:

I think if the president has a vision, and that's something certainly we're all willing to entertain and examine when the time comes. I think we should endorse it when we get to it, but I believe that the president's been doing a very good job so far. And, should he run again, I think that we'll take a look at it.

This isn't the first time AOC has taken on Biden.  Back in February, AOC had expressed frustration with Biden for not "using his executive power" to pass progressive policies. 

Perhaps that is the plan the Democrat establishment has for the midterms. 

They first blame Biden solely for all their failures.  Next, those contesting during the midterms urge the voters not to punish them for Biden's failure.  Democrat lawmakers in Washington can also claim that not much could be done because they didn't have the numbers.  Finally, they hold issues such as abortion "rights," gun control, climate change, and environmentalism as a carrot urging voters to give them a bigger majority, and they will deliver.  They are effectively informing voters not to worry about Biden because he is history.

But in addition to the Democrat establishment distancing themselves from Biden, it also appears that there may be a power struggle within the Democrat party.

Last week, AOC endorsed state senator Alessandra Biaggi's bid to unseat Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, the leader of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, ahead of their primary clash in a newly drawn district north of New York City.

Maloney is the preferred choice of the establishment, hence AOC's move was lambasted by President Obama's former campaign manager, Jim Messina, as counterproductive for the Democratic Party.

This is so counter-productive. The Supreme Court is about to outlaw abortion. We could lose both houses. So we are going to focus our time running against each other? Now we’re primarying commited progressives because. . .why? If we lose house it’s because of dumb shit like this https://t.co/fErOy85yrI

— Jim Messina (@Messina2012) June 7, 2022

AOC defended her endorsement by saying she was merely advocating for candidates in response to the party's changing dynamic.

AOC said:

Our party is changing, our party is dynamic. And right now, Millennials are deeply underrepresented in Congress compared to Baby Boomers and Gen Xers back when they were our age, frankly. At the end of the day, we need to have a generational shift in the United States Congress to have a policy shift in the United States Congress.

In addition to her reluctance to endorse Biden, AOC openly talks about the generational shift in the United States Congress and the need to do away with the older establishment candidates and replace them with young leftwing extremists who are "able to excite a base."

The fact that news of differences within the party is surfacing in the liberal media means that real difference and infighting must be considerably more pronounced.

Such chaos within the Democrat party is great short-term news for the GOP.  Their victory in the midterms may be more emphatic than previously thought.  But it would be most alarming if AOC and her extremist "Squad" manage to extend their clout in Washington.

Image: Pixabay, Pixabay License.