Gabriel Ocasio-Cortez, the brother of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), threatened to "sue" in a post on his TikTok account denying viral rumors that he was involved in a fentanyl trafficking ring.
A woman shared a TikTok video wrongfully identifying him as "Matthew" and included a fake article in which she declared that Rep. Ocasio-Cortez's brother was involved in drug trafficking.
“I’m the brother. My name’s not Matthew. I have no idea why they’re posting this,” Gabriel said in his own TikTok post. “I work with the homeless. I have nothing to do with this story, which isn’t real. Please find something better to do with your time.”
Gabriel shared a followup post explaining why he decided to publicly address the rumor, which resulted in him going viral, and threatened to take legal action against people spreading false information.
“That’s all it takes to start to get somebody that’s a little bit radicalized, somebody that’s willing to pick up their guns and go do something,” he added. “And it wouldn’t be the first time somebody’s tried. That’s the society that we’re in, so things like this are just more serious than ever — and you can’t slander people.”
Last week, famed polling expert Nate Silver said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was the most likely Democrat to win the 2028 presidential nomination should she decide to run. Silver appeared opposite former FiveThirtyEight podcast host Galen Druke during a '2028 Democratic primary draft' discussion on his Silver Bulletin Substack and was surprised to see that Druke, whom he claimed won the first pick via rock-paper-scissors, took Ocasio-Cortez himself.
“F**k you” Silver said to Druke. “That was going to be my f**king first pick!”
Druke referenced a recent Yale University poll, which said Ocasio-Cortez had one of the highest net favorability ratings among Democrats at +60 points, though it also placed her second in a hypothetical Democratic primary behind former Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 presidential nominee.
“I think there’s a lot of points in her favor at this very moment,” Druke said. “Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has broad appeal across the Democratic Party.”
“I think equally important is the fact that she has very fervent support," he added. "I think a lot of people are gonna run in 2028 and it’s going to be a contest for attention and getting those sort of people who might be in your boat to turn out and stay with you through thick and thin.”
Silver responded with, "I agree with everything," but said it wasn't confirmed whether Ocasio-Cortez was "sure to run," what will happen in the interim or whether the party had concerns regarding her electability. Druke, however, was far more confident that the congresswoman was planning a 2028 campaign given her recent 'Fighting Oligarchy Tour' alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders.
“She has learned a lot as a politician since those early days opposing Amazon and especially those early days of the ‘Abolish ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]’ stuff that was very unpopular,” he added. “Ultimately. If you listen to her message today, it’s all about the economy.”