'Beauty fades, stupid's forever': A Fox News contributor says Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 'photographs well' but questions whether she 'matters'
- A Fox News contributor and Fox Business Network host suggested that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is "stupid" but "photographs well" and questioned whether the New York lawmaker's opinion "matters" to 2020 Democratic voters.
- After asking if Ocasio-Cortez's endorsement would be "toxic" in a Democratic candidate's efforts to beat the president, Dagen McDowell joked of the congresswoman, "Beauty fades, stupid is forever."
- Fox has flooded its programming - on both the news and opinion sides - with coverage of the 29-year-old lawmaker since she upset a longtime incumbent in the Democratic primary last June.
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Fox News contributor Dagen McDowell seemed to call Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez "stupid" but physically attractive, and questioned whether the New York lawmaker's opinion on 2020 presidential candidates "matters" in the Democratic primary.
"Does her endorsement matter if you're trying to win the White House?" McDowell, a co-host on Fox Business Netowrk, asked on Fox News' "Outnumbered," referring to reports that some top 2020 candidates are vying for Ocasio-Cortez's endorsement in the presidential primary. "She's a socialist from New York City. She photographs well and she speaks with her hands, but beyond that does she matter?"
Fox News political analyst Juan Williams argued that Ocasio-Cortez's endorsement would be influential, thanks to her massive social media following, popularity among young people, and ability to "drive media attention."
Williams later suggested that the hosts wouldn't be talking about the 29-year-old lawmaker if she didn't matter, and argued that progressive environmental policies like the Green New Deal wouldn't get the attention they do without Ocasio-Cortez's advocacy.
"Beauty fades, stupid's forever," McDowell replied.
She then clarified that she was not talking about Williams. "It's directed at somebody else," she continued, smiling.
Ocasio-Cortez, a Bronx native, has repeatedly voiced support for Sens. Bernie Sanders' and Elizabeth Warren's presidential bids, and she has criticized former Vice President Joe Biden's position on climate policy. But she hasn't said when or whether she'll make an endorsement in the competitive race.
Fox News has flooded its programming - on both the news and opinion sides - with coverage of the 29-year-old lawmaker since she won her longshot insurgent primary race against longtime incumbent Joe Crowley last June.
During the week prior to the Senate's March 26 vote on the Green New Deal resolution, the liberal watchdog group Media Matters found that Fox delivered more primetime coverage of the policy than both MSNBC and CNN combined.