Drew Dixon
A party leader is criticizing two Florida Democrats with long-shot campaigns for U.S. Congressional seats for unauthorized use of material in their advertisements.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, known as AOC in political pop culture, is the U.S. Representative for New York’s 14th Congressional District, taking Gay Valimont and Josh Weil to task. Valimont is seeking Florida’s 1st Congressional District seat that Matt Gaetz held in the Panhandle until he resigned in November after President Donald Trump nominated Gaetz for U.S. Attorney General. Gaetz resigned from his congressional seat but then withdrew his name from the nomination after he had resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives.
Weil is running for Florida’s 6th Congressional District in and surrounding the Space Coast. As recently as Friday, his Republican competitor Randy Fine called for his arrest because one of his campaign workers was distributing campaign flyers on a stolen bicycle. That congressional seat is up for a special election on April 1 after Republican Michael Waltz vacated it to become Trump’s National Security Advisor.
In a social media post on the X platform this weekend, Ocasio-Cortez said neither Valimont nor Weil had permission to take excerpts from the New York Democrat’s 92-minute Instagram speech recorded in February. The two Florida Democrats were using Ocasio-Cortez’s Instagram address to raise funds for their campaigns in the Sunshine State.
“Fyi, this is being run as an ad without my consent. I’m not personally involved in any races right now,” Ocasio-Cortez said in an X post dated Saturday.
David Hogg, the Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee, has been involved in the inner-party flap. Hogg, who is from Florida and one of the survivors of the school shooting in Parkland in 2018, said he has advised the Florida Democrats to back off.
“The campaign hasn’t been approving this type of content – it’s this consultant who’s running this without anyone’s consent,” Hogg said in an X post, adding he has sent a cease-and-desist order to the political fundraising consultants on the campaign.
Hogg singled out fundraising adviser Jackson McMillan for the unauthorized use of the Ocasio-Cortez material.
“I’m done dealing with these a**holes, and it’s time they start being called out. Everyone says f*** the consultants but won’t name names. Jackson is one of many,” Hogg said in his X post.
While Valimont is up for the special election on April 1 for the vacant Gaetz seat, current Florida Chief Executive Officer Jimmy Patronis is the favorite to win.
19 comments
Kathleen Zajac
March 16, 2025 at 4:41 pm
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TJC
March 16, 2025 at 4:45 pm
This is a good example of how unorganized the Democrat Party is today. Instead of quietly discussing the unauthorized use of her words in their campaigns, AOC spanked two fellow Democrats in public, with Hogg joining in for no apparent good reason. She says she’s “not personally involved in any races right now,” as if that excuses a lack of discretion and lack of any support for members of her own party who only want to become Democrat members of congress representing Florida. Much needed representation.
I’ve never understood why anyone would vote for the chaotic craziness of Trump or Gaetz, and now the Democrats are showing that they can be crazy and self-serving, too. And while it’s true that an endorsement from AOC wouldn’t help these two Democrats in those two Florida districts, you can bet her public spanking of them will be put into play from the opposition.
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 8:58 am
Funny, that’s not what’s being posted on her Bluesky account. I guess since there are precious few GOP operatives on Bluesky, she doesn’t even mention the race in Florida in that time period. She has plenty to say about the ten Democratic sentaors who broke ranks on the filibustuer vote.
Not to say this race isn’t important, but, all of the muck being slung in this article is a non issue outside of Florida. Not to say it wouldn’t be MIND BLOWING if the 2 Dem candidates won the general vote, and also the race in NY, picking up a hat trick, and retaking the House. It would return the power of the purse and oversight to someone to stand up to Trump, and President Leon, but sadly, I don’t see it happening, this year. Maybe November 2026, if we’re still having elections. My two cents, adjusted for inflation.
Wendy
March 16, 2025 at 4:55 pm
Idiots quoting the Queen of idiots. Too darn funny. No wonder the authoritarian leftist are polling at historic lows. Please, please keep the stupidity coming!
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 8:59 am
Madlibbing is fun.
Billum
March 18, 2025 at 5:51 pm
‘Authoritarian left’? I mean, seriously, Wendy. What the hell are you even talking about, and then contrast it with the traitors setting the government and the economy on fire.
G man
March 16, 2025 at 7:21 pm
Who cares? The Gop is going to win both these races by comfortable margins….
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 9:01 am
They probably will. Sniping about bikes and unauthorised soundbites in opinion pages is about all the money the GOP is putting into this race, due to the demographics of the two districts.
Donna
March 18, 2025 at 9:39 pm
No doubt.
john augustine
March 20, 2025 at 12:38 pm
but why….I thought Rs are against what musk/trump are doing or are these independently wealthy 1% districts?
Bill Pollard
March 16, 2025 at 7:55 pm
This could have been handled more tactfully. A call to each of the candidates or their campaign managers would have been more appropriate. At that point something could have been sorted out instead of all this.
Wendy
March 17, 2025 at 12:29 pm
Instead it was handled by the childlike AOC who likely holds the record for the lowest IQ in Congressional history!
Peachy
March 17, 2025 at 2:37 pm
She is dumb. Not sure she is as dumb as Kammy, but her chasing away Amazon from NYC should have had her recalled or impeached. A loud mouth idiot. That’s all she is.
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 9:02 am
Madlibbing is fun.
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 9:11 am
‘Childlike?’ how so? SOunds like you’ve been getting your opinon of her from TMZ, instead of legit news.
People on the left are already talking of her primary-ing Schumer next year over the Senate Cloture vote. Essentially, any Dem candidate is going to be used by the GOP as a distraction by the administration in your district until the race is over, for things likeTrump’s desire to eliminate the debt ceiling, and privatizing Social Security. But “grrr, AOC bad, and dumb!” Meanwhile, medicare is being quietly eliminated, and seniors are having to chose between medicine, food, and rent agian. Good time, Good times.
Peachy
March 16, 2025 at 9:37 pm
AOC and David Hogg. Two peas in a pod. They should run as Pres and VP candidates. I endorse those two lib idiots.🤣
F.A. Montgomery
March 18, 2025 at 9:04 am
Red meat in the opinion pages keeps you reading. Don Henley wrote a song about it in the 80’s called ‘Dirty Laundry.’ The lyrics hold up nicely when I read opinion page comments.
Positive Mike
March 18, 2025 at 11:26 am
The Democratic Party is ked by idiots. David Hogge???? What the h is this young inexperienced aholedoing being vice chairman of the Democratic party???? Just plain idiocy!!! Yep, keep losing and making America lose. I’m done!!! This is a stupid party!!!
SUSAN APPLEGATE
March 20, 2025 at 11:50 am
Hey Positive Mike: Is America Great Again? Seems to me like the Dems look like Heavenly Angels compared to the red-hot poker with horns GOP.
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