“Squad” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez issued a stark message to Vice President Kamala Harris Wednesday, promising a progressive revolt if Federal Trade Chairperson Lina Khan gets axed from her role.
Wall Street-aligned backers of Harris — including billionaire Mark Cuban — have nudged the VP to ditch the FTC chief if Harris wins on Nov. 5 due to Khan’s hardline approach to business.
“Let me make this clear, since billionaires have been trying to play footsie with the ticket: Anyone goes near Lina Khan and there will be an out and out brawl,” a furious Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) wrote on X.
“And that is a promise. She proves this admin fights for working people. It would be terrible leadership to remove her.”
The 34-year-old, who reps parts of the Bronx and Queens, echoed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who issued a similar message Tuesday.
“@mcuban is wrong. Lina Khan is the best FTC Chair in modern history. By taking on corporate greed & illegal monopolies, Lina is doing an exceptional job preventing large corporations from ripping-off consumers & exploiting workers,” Sanders, 83, wrote on X.
“Thanks @linakhanFTC for what you are doing.”
Cuban, 66, has emerged as a prominent surrogate for Harris, 59, from the business world. He’s privately encouraged her to moderate her posture toward corporations and praised her being less aggressive than President Biden in wanting to raise capital gains taxes.
Recently, Cuban rankled progressives by telling Semafor that if he were Harris, he wouldn’t retain Khan, 35.
“By trying to break up the biggest tech companies, you risk our ability to be the best in artificial intelligence,” he told the news outlet.
Throughout Khan’s tenure, she has gained a reputation for being tough on antitrust issues, causing complaints that she has hamstrung business deals.
In recent days, Khan has appeared at or been scheduled to appear at events with a handful of Democratic lawmakers — including Sanders and progressive Reps. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Greg Casar (D-Texas), and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) — as the 2024 campaign nears its end.
Ironically, Khan’s endeavors against Big Tech and conglomerates in other sectors have earned her occasional praise from populist Republicans such as Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Republican vice presidential hopeful Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio).
“I guess I look at Lina Khan as one of the few people in the Biden administration that I think is doing a pretty good job,” Vance, 40, said earlier this year.
Harris has been coy about whether or not she will keep Khan at the helm of the FTC, leading to some anxiety from her left flank.
Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez are backing Harris in the presidential election.
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