Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: An Exceptional Orator

In just a few weeks, the 29-year-old Democratic representative has become the new anti-Trump voice in the United States. Adrien Rivierre, a public speaking expert, attributes her swift rise to her extraordinary oratorical talents.

“This is about our constituents and all of our lives!” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez raged during a congressional session on March 27. One of her Republican opponents had once again ridiculed her Green New Deal proposal, which aims to achieve carbon neutrality in the United States by 2030. Incensed, the rising star of the Democratic party launched into a diatribe that was as short as it was powerful. In just a few hours, the video circled the world and shone a light on the oratorical talent of the youngest representative elected to Congress in history.

It should be noted that this is not the first time she has achieved such a remarkable feat. On February 8th, she questioned a government official, beginning with the words ”Let’s play a game.” From there, the orator made a tenacious show of force, prepared and argumentative, aimed at condemning conflicts of interest between powerful American lobbyists and the current government in power.

This determination and commitment have become her trademark. Already, during her first official speech as a congressional representative, in which she denounced the disintegration of American democracy, the young 29-year-old woman excelled … her three short minutes of speech became the most watched following a tweet from C-SPAN, an American network that televises congressional hearings.

The New Obama

After more than two years of the Donald Trump presidency, her strong voice mobilizes and gathers the still largely scattered Democratic party. In Ocasio-Cortez’s rhetoric, many similarities to Barack Obama are blindingly obvious. Like him, she comes from the grassroots and not the establishment: a little over a year ago, she was still a server. Like him, she has foreign roots, as her mother is Puerto Rican. She mentions and makes use of this history to persuade, as Obama did by sharing accounts of his own life and commitment from Chicago’s neighborhoods to the United States presidency.

As Time magazine affirmed in a recent article, she is “arguably the best storyteller in the party since Barack Obama.” And like him, she doesn’t hesitate to show her emotions and speak to the hearts of her listeners by shining light on her hope for her country’s future. Finally, she perfectly points out existing mistakes by methodically asking questions that upset and denounce the Trump administration’s actions.

Social Media Star

Within a few weeks, enthusiasm for Ocasio-Cortez has increased more and more within states and among citizens. In a little over six months, she went from 40,000 to more than 3.81 million followers on Twitter. And on Instagram, she already has more than 3 billion followers.

This success is partially explained by speeches that are often short and full of soundbites that go viral quickly, but also by ideas that are diametrically opposed to those of Trump. For, and this is perhaps the most surprising thing, the congressional representative isn’t afraid to say that she is a socialist. Incidentally, this affiliation doesn’t persuade most of her own party, who are more moderate in many respects such as health or tax systems.

This new face and voice have undeniably been good for American democracy. It has been a long time since a political opponent has articulated their ideas so admirably and, what is more, with such eloquence. Ocasio-Cortez must now rally to increase pressure on current policy and become the indisputable leader of the opposition.