Progressive freshmen Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., are liabilities to the Democratic Party, according to an internal survey whose full results and methodology have not yet been released and whose partial findings were provided anonymously to reporters.

If a partially released, anonymously leaked survey does not fill you with confidence, you are not alone.

The most interesting thing here is not polling data suggesting Omar and Ocasio-Cortez are hugely unpopular with a specific segment of Democratic voters, but the fact that Democratic leaders leaked these figures at all. It marks a major escalation in the ongoing fight between the liberal (House Speaker Nancy Pelosi) and the ultra-liberal (Ocasio-Cortez) wings of the Democratic party.

Axios reported exclusively Monday:

Top Democrats are circulating a poll showing that one of the House's most progressive members — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — has become a definitional face for the party with a crucial group of swing voters.



Why it matters: These Democrats are sounding the alarm that swing voters know and dislike socialism, warning it could cost them the House and the presidency. The poll is making the rounds of some of the most influential Democrats in America.



"If all voters hear about is AOC, it could put the [House] majority at risk," said a top Democrat who is involved in 2020 congressional races. "[S]he's getting all the news and defining everyone else’s races."

The selectively released survey found that 74% of respondents recognized the name “Ocasio-Cortez” and that only 22% held a favorable view of the New York congresswoman. Likewise, 53% of respondents recognized the name “Ilhan Omar,” and only 9% held a favorable view.

It sounds damning alright, but all we know about the survey is that it was conducted in May and that it surveyed 1,003 white “likely general-election” voters have two years or less of a college education. That is it. That is all we know. The people leaking this information to the press have not released the survey’s full results or even its polling margin of error. Even more amazing is that the “group that took the poll shared the results with Axios on the condition that it not be named, because the group has to work with all parts of the party,” Axios’ Mike Allen notes.

Lastly, there is the curious use of the term “crucial group of swing voters” in the Axios report. This particular designation does not make much sense, according to pollster Frank Luntz.

“I haven’t seen the full demographic/location breakdown of that internal Dem poll, but it apparently only polled white non-college voters – who have been going GOP by 15+ points for the past decade,” he noted on social media. “Not sure why they’re called ‘swing voters’ by whoever leaked the poll to [Axios].”

I haven’t seen the full demographic/location breakdown of that internal Dem poll, but it apparently only polled white non-college voters – who have been going GOP by 15+ points for the past decade.



Not sure why they’re called “swing voters” by whoever leaked the poll to @Axios. pic.twitter.com/Yp7qO1G1Bd — Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) July 15, 2019

All that leaves us with is an "exclusive" poll that was received on the condition of anonymity, whose methodology and full results have not been made public, and whose supposed toplines are not being characterized accurately by the news outlet to whom the survey was leaked in the first place.

But accuracy and thoroughness were never the point.

The point in anonymously providing reporters with unflattering polling numbers on Ocasio-Cortez and Omar is to undermine further the freshmen women’s credibility and standing within their own party. The leak is a none-too-subtle attempt by Democratic leaders to shame and pressure the insurgent progressives into getting back in line.

It was clear there would come a day when Pelosi and her allies would work to silence and discipline the underprepared, over-eager, and inexperienced progressive freshman, whose frequent outbursts and penchant for going off half-cocked on social media have created a number of headaches for the Democratic Party. That day is here, if this cherry-picked polling data is any indicator.