Ocasio-Cortez issues surprising statement on Democrats challenging the party establishment

Although Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is painted by the media as a force to shake up the staid establishment of the Democratic party, she took a surprising stance against Democrats doing just that.

Ocasio-Cortez tweeted her disapproval Friday after a small group Democrats rebelled against the campaign of Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) for the speakership of the U.S. House of Representatives.

"9 Dems are choosing to hold the entire 220+ caucus hostage if we don’t accept their GOP-friendly rules that will hamstring healthcare efforts from the get-go," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.

"People sent us here to get things done, not 'negotiate' with an admin that jails children and guts people’s healthcare," she added.

Ocasio-Cortez was referring to nine Democrats in the House that said they had reached a "stalemate" with Pelosi over the upcoming vote for the speakership.

The group has called itself the "Problem Solvers" Democrats, and they are seeking changes in the rules of the House that would allow for greater compromise with Republicans in order to pass more legislation and avoid gridlock.

“Although we are at a stalemate in our discussions, and therefore cannot support Leader Pelosi for speaker at this time, we will keep working with the leader and others in hope of reaching consensus on specific rules changes for more bipartisan, common sense governing,” the dissenting Democrats said in a statement.

Pelosi is facing headwinds as she attempts to seize the gavel of the speakership again after losing it to the Republicans in 2010 during former President Obama's first term. However, she has used her influence to successfully nip in the bud a possible Democrat challenger to the speakership.