Former AOC comms director says Pelosi has impacted him in a 'negative way' with a 'whole lot of s--t': report
'Pelosi’s been doing a whole lot of s--t that’s been impacting my life in a negative way,' Trent told Politico
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's former communications director says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has impacted him in a "negative way."
"I’m a 40-year-old, and Pelosi’s been doing a whole lot of s--t that’s been impacting my life in a negative way for a long time; I don’t think she’s got a whole lot to be too proud of, though she thinks she does," Corbin Trent told Politico in an article published Thursday highlighting the complex relationship between the House speaker and "Squad" member.
Trent, who worked for Ocasio-Cortez and her campaign between 2018 and 2020, according to LinkedIn, went on to argue that Pelosi has been too lenient toward moderates and their policies regarding topics like health care, comparing her to centrist Democrat Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
"I’ve watched … her pat herself on the back continuously for her ‘master of negotiations’ with right-wing presidents and the Josh Gottheimers of the world," he told the outlet.
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He later added that he thinks "it’s a little disgusting" for the House speaker "to go in there and then say these freshman women of color of Congress are going in and posing for pictures."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Trent was referencing a moment when Pelosi appeared to criticize the Squad -- a group of four progressive congresswomen who took office in 2018 including Ocasio-Cortez, as well as Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
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"Some people come here, as [former House Appropriations Chair] Dave Obey would have said, to pose for holy pictures," Pelosi said, according to an excerpt of author Susan Page's new book, "Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi and the Lessons of Power," published in Politico Magazine Thursday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She then raised her voice, saying in a childlike manner, "See how perfect I am and how pure?"
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., speaks to members of her staff and volunteers who helped get out the vote. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
The comment spotlights a tense relationship between the two congresswomen that has unfolded in the media since Ocasio-Cortez first took office in 2018.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}As previously reported by Fox News, during a July 2019 press conference, Pelosi pushed back on questions about President Donald Trump’s efforts to characterize the progressive Squad members as the face of the Democratic Party, saying, "Let’s not waste our time on that."
At the time, members of the Squad were upset with Pelosi, whom they alleged was singling them out because they were women of color. Pelosi had made comments about the group’s prowess on social media amid their protest of an emergency border aid bill.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Page's book is based on more than 150 exclusive interviews, as well as in-depth interviews with the speaker herself, according to a description of the book on Amazon.
Fox News' Brittany De Lea contributed to this report.