Freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defended her decision not to donate money to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in protest of a policy to "blacklist" organizations that back Democratic candidates running against incumbents.

"I give quite a bit to fellow Dems - we’ve fundraised over $300,000 for others (more than my 'dues'), w/ over 50% going to swing seats," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on Friday.

"DCCC made clear that they will blacklist any org that helps progressive candidates like me," she said. "I can choose not to fund that kind of exclusion."

The New York congresswoman was reacting to an article by Fox News, which reported that some fellow House Democrats were upset with her decision not to pay the $250,000 dues. It also noted that there were 97 Democrats who hadn't paid as of records from October, but that more may have paid up before the end of the year.

The DCCC is the campaign arm of House Democrats. It made its policy official last year that it would not do business with vendors that work with Democratic caucus members' opponents. Ocasio-Cortez won her race in an upset over longtime incumbent former Democratic Rep. Joe Crowley in 2018.

How dues work: 'Extortion' or team effort? Lawmaker perspectives from 2016

The DCCC website says its mission is to "support Democratic House candidates every step of the way to fortify and expand our new Democratic Majority." The DCCC assigns fundraising amounts to congress members based on their levels of leadership and committee assignments, and money is used to boost Democratic members in contested races.

Lawmakers can meet these quotas by either fundraising for the DCC or donating from their own campaign, though meeting the quotas isn't mandatory.

“Sometimes the question comes: 'Do you want to be in a majority or do you want to be in the minority?'” Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said of Ocasio-Cortez, according to Fox News. “And do you want to be part of a team?"

Ocasio-Cortez says that she's not the only one who doesn't pay the dues. She said she wants to raise money for progressive candidates by "putting it straight into their pocket," according to Fox News. She raised more than any other House Democrat in the third quarter of 2019, according to reports.

“I’m happy to support some incumbents, but it’s not just a blanket rule," she added.

"Expanding a House majority is critical, which is why I regularly (and happily) fundraise sizeable amounts for fellow members. I also believe that a Dem majority should be transformative, which is why I give strategically. Seems fair, no?" Ocasio-Cortez said.

This isn't the first time she's been critical of the DCCC. Last year, Ocasio-Cortez called on her supporters to "pause" donations to the DCCC in response to the policy.

"The @DCCC’s new rule to blacklist+boycott anyone who does business w/ primary challengers is extremely divisive & harmful to the party," Ocasio-Cotez tweeted in March. "My recommendation, if you’re a small-dollar donor: pause your donations to DCCC & give directly to swing candidates instead."

Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, another freshman Democrat part of the progressive group of congresswomen of color dubbed "the Squad," also criticized the DCCC at the time.

"The fact that I challenged an incumbent meant a lot of folks were told not to come anywhere near my campaign. But I was lucky to build a dynamic, innovative team of staff & consultants who understood the challenges our campaign faced, and who were willing to take a risk," Pressley said.

The policy risked "undermining an entire universe of potential candidates and vendors - especially women and people of color - whose ideas, energy, and innovation need a place in our party," Pressley said.

AOC:'In any other country, Joe Biden and I would not be in the same party'

For its part, the DCCC has raised $125 million in 2019, surpassing its record for a non-election year, according to CNN. Its chairwoman, Cheri Bustos, told Fox News that paying the dues is "always up to individual members."

"We’re raising record amounts of money from our members," Bustos said.

Ocasio-Cortez has criticized the Democratic Party as being "too big of a tent," and set herself apart ideologically from more moderate members, saying that they would not be part of the same political party were it not for the United States' two-party system.

She has endorsed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., for president.