DNC Chair Tom Perez Defends Republican Convention Speakers Like Kasich: ‘I Think We’re Uniting America’
DNC Chairman Tom Perez defended against criticisms from some Democrats over the inviting of Republicans — most notably John Kasich — to speak at their convention.
There has been a fair amount of liberal criticism over Kasich and a few other Republicans speaking at the Democratic National Convention, including from Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez:
We can build bridges & not lose sight of our values.
It’s important to remember that Kasich is an anti-choice extremist. He 100% will (and has) signed away our reproductive rights the moment he has the opportunity to do so. He is not a friend to workers.https://t.co/7S8504VZcK
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 17, 2020
Perez responded to the criticism on ABC News prior to the start of the convention Monday night. He said, “I think we’re uniting America.’
“I think we’re uniting America,” Chair Tom Perez says in response to backlash over DNC inviting GOP speakers like Kasich.
Perez adds that while he agrees with some criticism of Kasich, “there are moments where it’s not about party, it’s about country.” https://t.co/U4wuWUc53u pic.twitter.com/1ujkUhftoI
— ABC News (@ABC) August 18, 2020
He said he agrees with Ocasio-Cortez’s criticisms of Kasich’s positions, while adding that he also agrees with Republicans like Kasich and others who “understand that there are moments when it is not about party, it is about country.”
“Donald Trump has obliterated the guardrails of democracy,” Perez said. “This is a convention for all people who care about an America where we work together. And this is about the politics of arithmetic. Addition beats subtraction any day of the week, and Joe Biden expands the number of people who are going to vote for him this November, and with Kamala Harris on the ticket, an added amount of energy.”
