Today, on the steps of the Capitol Building, there was an exchange between my current Congressman, Representative Ted Yoho, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, known better by her initials AOC. AOC was approached by Yoho, who seemed angry after hearing AOC argue that recent crime surges are caused by material conditions (such as going without a job during a pandemic without enough government help). He decided to lash out in an unusual bout of rage, rather than discuss the congresswoman’s viewpoints civilly, which, concerning the data we have, are correct. He said she was disgusting for holding such priors, and questioned her sanity. (My version of disgusting is leaving people in poverty with few options for escape, leading them to commit criminal acts to survive, especially in these terrible times.) Of course, the Congresswoman responded in a tweet saying, "That kind of confrontation hasn't ever happened to me — ever. I've never had that kind of abrupt, disgusting kind of disrespect levied at me." He started to walk away, but not before taking making one more vicious blow: he called her a “f*cking b*tch.”
This conduct is obviously not befitting of a congressperson, and the fact that he has been elected from my district repeatedly is very troubling. I must admit that I don’t think Yoho is a coward; he can be very brave. He was one of the few people to vote against an anti-lynching bill in memory of Emmet Till, under the tried, true, and tested excuse of “states rights.” It was already settled for decades that hate crimes are in the realm of federal justice, under civil rights acts passed decades ago, and even before the said act, many presidents told Congress to intervene against lynching, making it known that it was his duty and others to prevent any such acts from happening again. Yoho seems to deny, as with poverty, that he, as a congressman, has anything to do with it.
Ted Yoho is retiring this election. His campaign manager, Kat Cammack, is trying to take his place. But standing in her way, and other Republican candidates way is a campaign comprised of many young college students from the University of Florida and other schools in the area, the Adam Christensen for Congress campaign.
Keeping the progressive ambition of this young generation, they are pushing to elect a person who recognizes that being a part of congress is an honor that one must earn, and not one that should be disrespected in unnecessary and petty disputes. This campaign is working to elect Christensen, a young Democrat, to keep Cammack and the other possible Republican candidates out of Congress. Christensen understands the material roots of poverty and supports policies such as Medicare For All, free universal childcare, and government intervention to reduce pollution and create more and better housing. To implement all of these policies, and even to vote for and pass more moderate but similarly-intentioned ones would go great lengths to weaken the environmental and material causes of crime.