Bronx civics teacher John Cummings says that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has “inspired” him to run for office in 2020, according to the New York Post.
The Republican policeman-turned-teacher says he will run for Ocasio-Cortez’s seat in New York’s 14th District even though he knows victory may be a long shot — Hillary Clinton beat Trump there by 58 points in 2016.
Like Ocasio-Cortez, Cummings started out as a bartender. But unlike her, Cummings has ties to the Bronx that run quite deep.
“Unlike AOC, John Cummings was born and raised in the district,” said Bronx County Republican Chairman Mike Rendino. “He will be able to connect with the real New Yorkers in the Bronx and Queens who AOC takes for granted,” Rendino said.
A clear alternative
Cummings will represent a clear alternative to Ocasio-Cortez, who admits she is a Democratic socialist and favors policies like free health care for illegal immigrants and open borders rather than enforcing immigration laws.
“But to just come from the outside and take somebody on is really difficult,” Cummings told the Post in an exclusive interview.
He credits his students for pointing out that Ocasio-Cortez’s unlikely election “pretty much made my excuse — and I’ll use their quotes — ‘a lame one.'”
Cummings will be the second Republican candidate to file to run in the election. An anonymous donor has promised to fund a challenge to Ocasio-Cortez from the right.
Cummings’ platform
For Cummings, it isn’t about toppling Ocasio-Cortez, he says. “I’m not personally invested in this to go after [Ocasio-Cortez]. That’s not my thing. I just think that people need common-sense representation.”
“I’m a service-oriented guy,” said Cummings, who moonlights as a women’s basketball broadcaster at Fairfield College and a singer in a local classic rock band.
“I’m a constituent in District 14. I think that can transcend party. I’m not in this for any other reason than to make sure we have adequate representation in the district,” Cummings said.
Freedom of choice in education, a free-market economy and infrastructure improvements are parts of his platform. Still, in a district as Democrat-dominated as the 14th, he assuredly has his work cut out for him.
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