Try this mental exercise: Pit the spectacle of South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham's angry white man tirade during the Brett Kavanaugh hearings against this cheery little response from New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to right-wing uproar over a now-viral dance video from her college days.
If you found Ocasio-Cortez to be more winning than Graham, my guess is you’re in good company with most American voters. Sure, there's a bunch of old white men who identify with Graham’s exasperation as they watch their once-hallowed star begin to fall in line with everyone else's. But the majority of most other demographics—women (young and old), people of color, many middle aged and most young voters—are going to say, I'll have whatever Ocasio-Cortez is having.
Her playful rejoinders to GOP attacks embody what people sometimes refer to as a happy warrior, and that will make her and her politics generally more palatable and digestible over time. In the meantime, Graham sounds like a bitter has-been. A debate between the two would be epic.
Liberals often frame what Ocasio-Cortez is doing as "hitting back" against Republicans. It's not quite the right framing, I think. It’s more like she's poking fun at her crotchety old uncle—ribbing them with amusement at how antiquated they are. And the more she does it, the more irrelevant they grow. Republicans simply aren’t playing in the same league or even to the same people. But the audience Ocasio-Cortez is appealing to has far more growth potential while the Lindsey Grahams of the world keep whittling down their core devotees. Whittle away, gentlemen, Ocasio-Cortez is just getting started.