Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders on multi-state tour to rally Democrats against MAGA, amid Schumer outcry

Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has embarked on a multi-state tour in what appears to be the most recent and organized effort to unify the Democratic Party against the Trump administration.

Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, and Sanders, a Vermont Independent and former Democratic presidential candidate, stopped in Nevada on Thursday and will be in Colorado and Arizona on Friday.

The tour is part of Sanders’ “Fighting Oligarchy: What's Next” tour, in which the senator essentially argues the U.S. is headed toward an Oligarchy government as President Trump continues to fill his cabinet and other top-level posts with industry titans including billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, head of the administration's Department of Government Efficiency. 

“This isn’t just about Republicans," Ocasio-Cortez told a crowd in Las Vegas, according to NBC News. "We need a Democratic Party that fights harder for us, too."

Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez, considered among the most progressive lawmakers on Capitol Hill, are also touring together amid Democratic Party backlash against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer for having supplied enough Senate Democrat votes for the passage of a GOP-led, stopgap spending bill earlier this month to avoid a government shutdown. 

Ocasio-Cortez did not mention Schumer by name, but the crowd at times broke out into multiple “Primary Chuck” chants – a growing call within the party to challenge Schumer, a fellow New York Democrat, in a 2028 primary should he seek reelection.

At the Las Vegas rally, Sanders said to regain voters' support, the Democratic Party leadership must tell the truth about the influence billionaires have in U.S. politics. 

He told CBS News the face of the Democratic Party needs to be "working-class people, young people, people who get their hands dirty, people who may not have graduated college, people who do not have PhDs in economics, people who are struggling to put food on the table. They've got to be involved. We've got to listen to them."