New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called out South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg for his criticism of tuition-free public college proposals in an ad his campaign launched in Iowa.
"I believe we should move to make college affordable for everybody," Buttigieg says in a new ad. "There are some voices saying, 'Well that doesn't count unless you go even further, unless it's free even for the kids of millionaires,' but I only want to make promises that we can keep. We can gather the majority to drive those big ideas through without turning off half the country before we even get into office."
The ad appears to be a response to the tuition-free college plans proposed by Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.
AOC hits back:
Ocasio-Cortez, who recently endorsed Sanders’ campaign, hit out at Buttigieg’s remarks.
"This is a GOP talking point used to dismantle public systems, & it's sad to see a Dem candidate adopt it," she tweeted. "Just like rich kids can attend public school, they should be able to attend tuition-free public college."
"Universal public systems are designed to benefit EVERYBODY!" she explained. "Everyone contributes & everyone enjoys. We don't ban the rich from public schools, firefighters, or libraries bc they are public goods."
She added that a tuition-free system means that “everyone’s invested” while “carving people out & adding asterisks” would “cause cracks in the system.”
“Many children of the elite want to go to private, Ivyesque schools anyway," she said. "I can't believe we have to remind people of this, but it's GOOD to have classrooms (from pre-k through college) to be socioeconomically integrated. Having students from different incomes & backgrounds in the same classroom is good for society & economic mobility.”
Bernie campaign slams Buttigieg:
Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir also hit out at Buttigieg’s comments.
“To have an advanced society that lifts the working class, you need universal benefits paid for through progressive taxation,” he wrote. “Why does Pete dislike Social Security, Medicare, public parks, libraries, fire stations, etc.?”
