TOPLINE

 

Robinhood is facing bipartisan fury over its decision to stop GameStop, AMC and other trades, but the issue isn’t healing all the divisions in Washington, with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) refusing to work with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) because he has not apologized for supporting the effort to overturn Biden’s win, which she says led to the Capitol riot that put her life in danger.

KEY FACTS

Ocasio-Cortez tweeted that Robinhood, an app that lets regular users buy and sell stock, should be investigated for halting GameStop and other trades, “while hedge funds are freely able to trade the stock as they see fit.”

Cruz said he “fully” agrees, aligning the two lawmakers who are on the opposite ends of the political spectrum in rare bipartisan agreement.

In response, Ocasio-Cortez said she will work with other Republicans on the issue, but not Cruz: “You almost had me murdered 3 weeks ago so you can sit this one out,” she said, adding that “moving on” from the Capitol riot requires “accountability.”

Cruz did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes, but told reporters, “There’s a lot of partisan anger and rage on the Democratic side. It’s not healthy for our country, it’s certainly not conducive of healing or unity.”

CRUCIAL QUOTE

“You haven’t even apologized for the serious physical + mental harm you contributed to from Capitol Police & custodial workers to your own fellow members of Congress. In the meantime, you can get off my timeline & stop clout-chasing. Thanks. Happy to work with other GOP on this,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

KEY BACKGROUND

Cruz voted against certifying the election for Biden, and promoted conspiracy theories about voter fraud, which Democrats say legitimized the claims that lead to the deadly attack on the Capitol earlier this month. Cruz has denied any role in the riot, saying his objections in the Senate were “debating” the issue without resorting to violence. Meanwhile, Robinhood and other online brokerages limited or shut down trading of GameStop and other stocks Thursday, immediately garnering backlash across the political spectrum from those who say the move protects Wall Street. Retail investors have already filed class action lawsuits against the company.

TANGENT

Ocasio-Cortez described what it was like during the attack on Instagram Live, saying she feared she was going to die after a close encounter with the pro-Trump mob who stormed the Capitol. “I myself did not even feel safe going to that extraction point because there were QAnons and white supremacist sympathizers and, frankly, white supremacist members of Congress in that extraction point who I know and who I had felt would disclose my location,” she said.

SURPRISING FACT

Tesla CEO Elon Musk also agrees with Ocasio-Cortez that there needs to be an investigation in Robinhood.