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David Taub Website photo 2024
By David Taub, Senior Reporter
Published 6 years ago on
June 29, 2019

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LOS BANOS — Rep. Jim Costa doesn’t like being called a racist, especially by a staffer of the House’s most controversial freshman.
In a tweet posted Thursday, Saikat Chakrabarti, chief of staff for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), compared moderate Democrats to those in the party with racist pasts.


Costa, a Fresno Democrat, has long touted his Blue Dog credentials. Moderate Democrats who take a more conservative political approach than their progressive colleagues comprise the Blue Dog Caucus.
“Obviously, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Costa said of Chakrabarti on Friday.
Costa talked to GV Wire while in Los Banos for a town hall with Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.

Official congressional portrait of Jim Costa
“We have some incredibly talented new members. I think some of them need to focus on how we work together as a caucus to get things done as opposed to these intramural fights that at the end of the day don’t solve any problems.” — Rep. Jim Costa
“We have some incredibly talented new members,” Costa said. “I think some of them need to focus on how we work together as a caucus to get things done as opposed to these intramural fights that at the end of the day don’t solve any problems.”
Chakrabarti tweeted, “Instead of ‘fiscally conservative but socially liberal,’ let’s call the New Democrats and Blue Dog Caucus the ‘New Southern Democrats.’ They certainly seem hell bent to do black and brown people today what the old Southern Democrats did in the 40s.”

Staffer Deletes Tweet But Continues Attack

He later deleted the tweet, only to continue with similar sentiments.
“Can we stop calling the Blue Dog Caucus ‘fiscally conservative but socially liberal?'” he tweeted later. “I missed the part of fiscal conservativeness or social liberalness that includes wasting $4.5 billion of taxpayer money to put kids in concentration camps.”
Chakrabarti noted that in other posts he “replaced” the initial post “with the same point stated differently” because “some progressives took it as a personal insult.”
His comments came on the heels of Ocasio-Cortez criticizing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for bringing a border funding bill to a vote without changes from the Senate version pushed by Senate Leader Mitch McConnell.
“Under no circumstances should the House vote for a McConnell-only bill w/no negotiation with Democrats,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “Hell no. That’s an abdication of power we should refuse to accept. They will keep hurting kids if we do.”

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David Taub,
Senior Reporter
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

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