Ocasio-Cortez calls focus on Hasan Piker 'absolutely ludicrous' as some Democrats demand distance
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., brushed off far-left streamer Hasan Piker's role in American politics on Thursday, questioning why people were focused or devoting time to him.
"It is absolutely ludicrous that so much oxygen from sitting elected officials in the United States Congress is being dedicated to discourse around a Twitch streamer for young people," Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the progressive Squad, said according to The Hill.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., also didn't dismiss him outright, telling the outlet she wouldn't defend all his views.
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"That's for him to do," Jayapal said.
"I don’t know why, all of a sudden, the standard is you have to agree with everything he said."
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Jaypal told the outlet Democrats needed to reach Piker's voters.
"I think that we have been talking about how we need to reach out to all parts of our party and also how difficult it is sometimes to get people to pay attention to politics, and, so, streamers are important in that," Jayapal said.
The Hill cited multiple Democrats who have dismissed Piker, including Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., who told the outlet, "Not only should people not be on stage with him or take his support, they should condemn his views and what he has said.
"And I think anything short of that is unacceptable."
Piker has campaigned with several Democrats this midterm election cycle, including Abdul El-Sayed, who is running for Senate in Michigan. Other Democrats have expressed the importance of reaching Piker's listeners, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
Sanders was asked about Piker's past statements on 9/11, which the streamer has since walked back.
Sanders condemned the comments and told CNN in August, "He has a whole lot of followers and a lot of things that he's saying that are making sense to a lot of people. I think, you know, we have to get above cancel culture. You know, when you're doing radio, whatever they do, podcasts three hours a day, you say dumb things."
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Speaking to Stephen A. Smith during his show, "Straight Shooter," El-Sayed said this week he was trying to reach Piker's listeners.
"What I'm saying is there are 3 million people who listen to Hasan," El-Sayed said. "I want to offer them a pathway into an electoral movement where, rather than sit outside of the electoral system, they see a pathway around the things that they agree with that he says that I agree with and a pathway that disavows the things that I disagree with. And, so, it's important."
Smith summarized El-Sayed's strategy as an effort to win over Piker's audience rather than an endorsement of the streamer personally.
"So, you're not thinking about him. You’re not thinking about him. You’re thinking about the 3 million people that support him, and you're trying to get those votes. That's what you're saying?" Smith said.
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"Exactly," El-Sayed said.
Fox News Digital reported last week that El-Sayed attempted to put distance between his campaign and Piker after the streamer faced backlash over comments about American Jews and Israel. Piker endorsed El-Sayed and appeared at multiple campaign events, including his primary night gathering.
Democratic strategist Kaivan Shroff told Fox News Digital in a statement, "A lot of these folks are being rather disingenuous. Yes, media is running wild, arguably disproportionately so, with this Piker story, but a big reason for that is El-Sayed’s hard to understand refusal to create more distance between himself and the streamer or just flat disavow him.
"You can’t have it both ways. Either he is just some random streamer or he is a critical figure for the left’s political movement. His refusal to … denounce him suggests the latter, though strategically it seems Piker is more of a liability than a help. Recent polling showed the vast majority of Democrats don’t like him."
Schroff said Democrats like him have been consistent in calling out President Donald Trump for "dining with Nick Fuentes and bringing Laura Loomer into his inner circle."
"And the reason certain candidates do have the burden to disavow Piker is not because he is some influencer who boosts them. … They have actively sought him out, campaigned with him and joined his streaming platform," he added. "Normal Democrats do not want to be associated with the insane things Piker has said."
"AOC, Bernie Sanders and Abdul El-Sayed rolled out the red carpet for Hasan Piker, but now that voters are catching on to how insane his views are, they've developed a sudden case of amnesia," RNC spokesman Max Lippel told Fox News Digital in a statement.
"Piker has always been an America-hating extremist, and if they didn't want to answer for his disgusting views, they should have never requested he campaign with them to begin with."
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The account then followed up with a post calling Piker "our Twitch streamer."
Fox News' CJ Womack contributed to this report.