AOC’s Chief of Staff QUITS

Big staffing changes are happening at Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s office.  Her chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, has quit, as has her communications director, Corbin Trent.

“Saikat has decided to leave the office of Rep. Ocasio-Cortez to work with New Consensus to further develop plans for a Green New Deal,” Trent told the Intercept Friday.

“We are extraordinarily grateful for his service to advance a bold agency and improve the lives of the people in NY-14.  From his co-founding of Justice Democrats to his work on the Ocasio-Cortez campaign and in the official office, Saikat’s goal has always been to do whatever he can to help the larger progressive movement, and we look forward to continuing working to do just that.”

Chakrabarti, 33, is a Harvard grad, tech entrepreneur, and far-left activist.  He’s often considered the brains behind AOC, and many suspect he’s leaving her staff now to find the next progressive darling to run in 2020.

Chakrabarti’s tenure has been rife with controversial moments: he compared moderate Democrats to the Southern Democrats of the 1940s; he admitted the Green New Deal was about controlling the economy, not climate; he made a video while wearing a t-shirt featuring a Nazi collaborator; he’s been accused of illegally funneling campaign funds.

This guy sounds like a peach.

Chakrabarti’s replacement will reportedly be AOC’s legislative affairs director, Ariel Eckblad, 31.  Eckblad previously worked for Senator Kamala Harris.

In the meantime, AOC was on Instagram Live last night attempting to cook rice:

https://twitter.com/TheHarryCherry/status/1157469964674174977

Chakrabarti’s departure is a pretty big deal.  How do you think AOC is going to do without her man-behind-the-curtain?