Ocasio-Cortez shocked to learn lobbyists pay others to stand in line

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was left beyond “shock” when she learned that Washington lobbyists paid homeless people to hold their place in line outside of congressional hearings.

The first-term congresswoman said she left a hearing on homelessness on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and saw people camped outside in the hallway.

She asked her staff if they were part of a demonstration.

“‘No,’ they said. ‘Lobbyists pay the homeless + others to hold their place so they can get in 1st,” Ocasio-Cortez posted on Twitter on Wednesday. “Shock doesn’t begin to cover it.”

The queue was just another indication of the prevalence of money’s immense influence in the political system.

“Apparently this is a normal practice, and people don’t bat an eye. The first few people in line are guaranteed a seat in a given hearing,” she said. “This was the hearing for marijuana banking laws. Lobbyists and those who can afford it pay people to hold their spot so they get in 1st.”

Using a person as a placeholder is a long-standing practice in the corridors of Congress, but not in the halls of justice, as one Twitter user pointed out to her.

“Congresswoman: The Supreme Court changed its rules three years ago to prohibit this exact practice, at least for members of the #SCOTUS Bar,” Steve Vladeck responded to her, including a link to a Washington Post story. “Maybe Congress should follow suit?”

The report from October 2016 said the Supreme Court outlawed “line standers” at the beginning of its fall term.

It said people were paying up to $50 an hour for someone to hold a place in line for one of the precious spots in the chamber when justices were hearing arguments on notable cases.

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