PPI - Radically Pragmatic
  • Donate
Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
    • Locations
    • Careers
  • People
  • Projects
  • Our Work
  • Events
  • Donate

Our Work

Kim for Medium: How “Moderates” are bolder than the left

  • March 21, 2019
  • Anne Kim

Freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently drew big cheers at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, earlier this month when she dissed the views of political moderates as “misplaced.” “Moderate is not a stance. It’s just an attitude towards life of, like, ‘meh,’” she told a standing-room only crowd. “The ‘meh’ is worshipped now — for what?”

Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks reflect an old line of attack from the progressive left: that moderates are “mushy” — timid, if not cowardly; that they value incrementalism over true progress; and, worst of all, that they are guilty of “triangulation” — the unprincipled pandering to swing voters by pushing off both left and right.

 

Read the full piece on Medium by clicking here.

Related Work

In the News  |  July 21, 2026

PPI in The Times of London: ‘Neoliberalism’ was good enough for Tony Blair

  • Will Marshall
Op-Ed  |  July 17, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: It’s Time to Retire ‘Rigged System’ Populism

  • Will Marshall
Op-Ed  |  July 3, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: Democrats Stand for Liberalism, Not Socialism

  • Will Marshall
Press Release  |  July 1, 2026

Democrats Should Learn From Colorado’s 20-Plus-Year Winning Streak, Not One Victory in Deep-Blue Denver

  • Will Marshall
In the News  |  June 24, 2026

PPI in News from the States: Get Ready for the Semiquincentennial: Americans Celebrate a 250th Anniversary

  • Richard D. Kahlenberg
Op-Ed  |  June 19, 2026

Marshall for The Hill: Trump’s Reign of Grift and Graft is Without Parallel

  • Will Marshall
  • Never miss an update:

  • Subscribe to our newsletter
PPI Logo
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Donate
  • Careers
  • © 2026 Progressive Policy Institute. All Rights Reserved.
  • |
  • Privacy Policy
  • |
  • Privacy Settings