All four members of "The Squad" win reelection in their congressional races
After the 2018 midterm election, four progressive, first-time Democratic congresswomen gained nationwide attention. Representatives Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley joined forces during their first two years in Congress and became prominent targets of President Trump. All four ran for reelection this year — and all four have won.
CBS News has projected that Omar defeated Lacy Johnson in Minnesota, Ocasio-Cortez defeated John Cummings in New York, Tlaib defeated David Dudenhoefer in Michigan, and Ayana Pressley defeated Roy Owens in Massachusetts.
To mark the group's success, Omar tweeted a simple message: "Our sisterhood is resilient."
The four freshmen congresswomen have supported ambitious progressive proposals like the Green New Deal, a higher minimum wage, and calls to impeach President Trump.
Shortly after being sworn in, they dubbed themselves "The Squad" and found themselves in a battle with Mr. Trump, who took aim at them in a series of tweets in 2019. In one tweet, he falsely asserted that they "originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe," and said they should "go back" to them. All four congresswomen, of course, are U.S. citizens and three were born here; Omar, a Somalian refugee, has been a citizen for two decades.
While the president didn't name the women in his tweets, he made clear in later statements he was referring to The Squad members. The women later held a press conference together to push back against the president's remarks.
The House also voted to condemn Mr. Trump's "racist comments," saying they "legitimized and increased fear and hatred of new Americans and people of color."
The Squad later sat down for an interview with "CBS This Morning" co-host Gayle King in which Pressley and Tlaib said Mr. Trump's attack was a "a distraction."
Omar said, "You should be asking, why is it that we are being criticized? What is it that we bring to this body?"
"I'll tell you what we bring," Tlaib said. "We're an extension of a movement in our country that wants Medicare for all, that wants us to end mass incarceration," the Michigan congresswoman asserted. "That wants us to push back against the attacks on communities of color. I mean, I think all of us have incredibly strong residents in our district that have spoke volumes in electing people like us."
