Asked about New York City congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier’s reported past comments supporting communism, House Democratic leaders suggested this week that she had changed and moderated her views.
CNN reported earlier this week that Avila Chevalier had repeatedly shared on a now-deleted Twitter account sympathetic posts about communism, Marxism and Soviet figures including revolutionary Vladimir Lenin. In an MS NOW interview on Monday, she denied being a communist and said that scrutiny of her past comments is a “distraction.”
Asked about the CNN report and whether communists have a place in the Democratic caucus, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said, “I don’t think there’s a single member of the House Democratic Caucus right now that identifies as communist.”
He said that Avila Chevalier is “going to have to speak for herself in terms of what she said in the past” but said she has been “pretty clear that she’s walked away from many of the things that have been unearthed, and has pretty clearly indicated that she’s a different person, but that’s for her, ultimately, to communicate, and I’m confident that she will, as best she can.”
Jeffries then pivoted to discussing affordability issues.
