Self-professed socialist comic Lewis Black scoffed at the candidacy of New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, insisting that she is not the candidate the Democrats need to get back in power.

In an extended interview with the Daily Beast, Black indulged quite a lot of Trump bashing.

But the comedian, who recently joked that a law should be passed forcing presidents to shut up during the summer, also said that the left’s favorite new socialist candidate from New York, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is not the answer. After being asked if Ocasio-Cortez’ candidacy might offer the left a “glimmer of hope,” Black demurred.

“No it doesn’t, because it’s not going to happen,” Black said. “The one thing I’ve learned in my lifetime is that we’ve got to get to the middle before we start pushing things in other directions. We’ve gotta get to the middle, and they have to sit down and decide how to do things.”

The Daily Beast added that many Democrats “aren’t willing to go to the middle” and that is why many voted for Bernie Sanders and chose not to vote for Hillary Clinton in the general election.

“Yeah, I think you’re right. What I’ve always said about the Democrats is that, if they’re given a sword or a spear, instead of using it their immediate instinct is to fall on it. You know?” Black added.

A month before the presidential election, Black warned the

Lewis Black, who reaffirmed to the Daily Beast that he considers himself to be a socialist, also scolded the left for the recent spate of left-wingers attacking their own over issues of political correctness and #MeTooism.

“It’s really on both sides, though. Both sides have that neurosis. There’s the political correctness on the other side that also does its own policing job, which is really astonishing,” Black complained. “At times I’ve thought, ‘Really? It’s coming from the left? Are you serious?’ It’s astonishing because it’s like, we don’t change the world, assholes — we’re comics.

“People don’t go, boy, I listened to this comic last night and now I’m going to completely change my lifestyle,” Black said. “I saw a comic last night and now I’m going to give up my guns!”

Black, a month before the 2016 election, warned that anybody who voted for Trump is “going to go to hell.”

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.