Let's Bring the AOC Conversation Out of the Shadows
The debate about an AOC presidential run has already started
Everyone wants to talk about Zohran Mamdani, the NYC mayoral candidate who is a Cinderella story if Cinderella’s step sisters were both facing charges of serious misconduct. There’s some talk of Mamdani being the future of the Democratic Party, stemming largely from Mamdani’s social media use, his embrace of socialism, and the fact that — unlike many other Democratic leaders — you can look at Mamdani without thinking “any moment now, he might turn into a pile of dust.”
Of course, Mamdani isn’t mayor yet. He might still get beat by the uninspiring moderate facing corruption charges, the uninspiring moderate facing sexual harassment charges, or the Republican giddy at the thought of winning in a split field and exacting revenge on his commie pinko neighbors. If Mamdani wins, he might end up like Bandon Johnson, the highly progressive Chicago mayor whom some are calling “the least popular politician in America”, which Johnson may be or may not be, but having that conversation around you is like people debating whether you’re mentally disabled: The fact that the conversation exists means that the answer doesn’t really matter. Plus, no sane person could think that being mayor of New York is a stepping stone to the presidency — the last three New York mayor presidential runs went like this:
Rudy Giuliani: Bet everything on Florida, came in third in Florida, got fewer delegates than Alan Keyes, possibly contracted the brain gremlin responsible for his behavior over the last decade.
Michael Bloomberg: Mostly remembered for Elizabeth Warren dunking on him during a debate harder than Vince Carter dunked on that that French guy at the Olympics. Spent $1 billion of his own money and only won American Samoa, which was probably not the plan.
Bill de Blasio: Somehow did even worse than Bloomberg.