Democrats don’t have any new ideas ahead of 2020. They don’t think they need them because they finally have a muse.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is the cool kid who transferred into a school of nerds. Everyone wants to be like her, and who can blame them? She is cooler than former President Barack Obama, scrappier than House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and nicer than Hillary Clinton could ever hope to be.

But presidential hopefuls should take note: Dancing in the kitchen on social media doesn’t make a candidate cool. It makes them old. Of course, that won’t stop them from trying.



I hear the GOP thinks women dancing are scandalous.



Wait till they find out Congresswomen dance too! 💃🏽



Have a great weekend everyone :) pic.twitter.com/9y6ALOw4F6 — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 4, 2019

When Ocasio-Cortez trolls Republicans by dancing in front of her office, she is endearing. But when Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., posts a video of herself doing a wriggling mom-dance on stage, it is uncomfortable. As a general rule, anyone born back when President Lyndon B. Johnson was in the White House should think twice before trying to connect with voters through political dance.



Ok y’all, I need your help finding really good instant pot recipes for our IG Live conversations.



Can you post your favorite recipes below? ⬇️



All meals, cuisines, and dietary choices welcome. They just need to be GOOD, don’t put me onto things with no flavor ✋🏽 — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 18, 2018

Same thing with those streaming kitchen confessionals where Ocasio-Cortez cooks up millennial revolution and recipes in her instant pot. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., tried to do something similar from her kitchen on Instagram. Streaming live from her D.C. townhouse, the Harvard Law professor of a senator told viewers to “hold on a sec, I’m gonna get me a beer.”

None of this is relatable when older politicians do it. None of this is particularly surprising, either. Candidates will do anything their consultants think will make them seem cool.

The bigger problem comes when politicians unthinkingly accept the policies that come with the dancing. Again, Harris provides a cautionary example.

The California Democrat almost endorsed what amounts to a 70 percent marginal tax rate on “The View” while trying to fit in with Ocasio-Cortez. Co-host Meghan McCain asked what she thought about “this ideology of the socialist left” and Harris appeared to heap praise on her party’s "it girl" without thinking through the implications.

“I think that she is challenging the status quo,” Harris said, pausing for applause. “I think that’s fantastic.” She continued:



"I used to teach before, especially before in the last few years. And the thing that I always loved about teaching was when you teach, it requires you to defend the premise and it requires you to reexamine the premise and question, is it still relevant? Is it, is it, does it have impact? Does it have meaning? And I think that she is introducing bold ideas that should be discussed. And I think it’s good for the party and frankly I think it’s good for the country. Let’s look at the bold ideas, and I’m eager that we have those discussions and when we are able to defend the status quo then do it, and if there’s not merit to that then let’s explore new ideas."



Exploring ideas is one thing. Casually signing off on massive redistribution of wealth is quite another.

Harris and Warren and every other candidate out there realizes that Ocasio-Cortez will play an oversized role in the 2020 primary. They should also know that while her personality is relatable everywhere, her politics have only been tested in one rotten Brooklyn borough of a congressional district. Serious candidates should promote serious ideas then, instead of embarrassing themselves trying to be young again.