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<\/a>Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, speaks during South by Southwest on Saturday, March 9, 2019, in Austin, Texas. (Nick Wagner\/Austin American-Statesman via AP)<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n
NEWSMAX<\/p>\n
Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose sudden rise to prominence has made her a target of Republicans and a sometime irritant to her party\u2019s leaders, called capitalism an \u201cirredeemable\u201d system that is to blame for income inequality.<\/p>\n
The 29-year-old, first-term U.S. House member from New York and self-described democratic socialist addressed an enthusiastic crowd Saturday at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, about issues that resonate with her fellow millennials, from universal healthcare to combating climate change.<\/p>\n
She directed some of her sharpest comments at an economic system that she said values profit over people.<\/p>\n
\u201cCapitalism is an ideology of capital \u2013- the most important thing is the concentration of capital and to seek and maximize profit,\u201d Ocasio-Cortez said. And that comes at any cost to people and to the environment, she said, \u201cso to me capitalism is irredeemable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though she said she doesn\u2019t think all parts of capitalism should be abandoned, \u201cwe\u2019re reckoning with the consequences of putting profit above everything else in society. And what that means is people can\u2019t afford to live. For me, it\u2019s a question of priorities and right now I don\u2019t think our model is sustainable.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead of conservative politicians scaring people that socialism means the government is going to take over their business, \u201cwe should be scared right now because corporations have taken over our government,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Warren, Klobuchar<\/p>\n
Texas\u2019 South by Southwest conference has evolved into one of the country\u2019s defining cultural events combining music and film festivals with showcases for technology and politics. One year away from the Super Tuesday primary where Texas will loom large, it\u2019s an ideal venue for presidential aspirants to raise their profile and test their message early in the race.<\/p>\n
Several Democratic party\u2019s presidential candidates, including Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Amy Klobuchar, were at the festival making their appeals to the same audience. Ocasio-Cortez has taken an outsized role as a freshman representative with her outspokenness and social-media savvy.<\/p>\n
Republicans have been citing remarks by Ocasio-Cortez and some of her allies to attack Democrats as trying to push the country toward socialism. Although senior Democratic officials dismiss that allegation, Ocasio-Cortez\u2019s remarks in Austin are likely to be highlighted by GOP critics.<\/p>\n
\u2018Fewer Than Ever\u2019<\/p>\n
While America is wealthier than ever, wealth is enjoyed \u201cby fewer than ever,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t feel good to live in an unequal society,\u201d she said, citing an increase in homelessness in New York City among veterans and the elderly while penthouses sit empty. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t feel good to live in a society like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
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