Earlier in 2026, we reported that two members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) won their primaries in New York City districts. Because of the locations, they're likely to win in the general election. 

One of them - Claire Valdez, the candidate for the 7th congressional district - posted a tweet earlier this week that has caused an uproar. 

215 years ago, Mexicans fought an empire that demanded our land and our labor. And we won.  

I'll carry that fight with me to Congress as New York's first Mexican American representative. 

And I'm strengthened not just by Mexico's history but its present. Last month I met comrades in Morena who are standing up to the empires and corporations that have always taken from us – and building a government for the working class. 

¡Viva la Independencia, Viva México!

The "our" in the first sentence is doing a lot of work there. "Our" land and labor? Valdez was born in Texas and lives in New York, so what is she talking about? According to the New York Times, in addition to her Mexican background, she identifies as a Native American citizen of the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo Nation. 

What is that? According to Wikipedia, that's a tribal nation whose people are descendants of Southern Tiwa people who had been displaced from Spanish New Mexico from 1680 to 1681 during the Pueblo Revolt against the Spaniards.

Who does Valdez intend to "fight" for and against in that tweet? 

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There are already enough questions about DSA members serving in Congress, since their platform wants to upend our constitutional order.

But, as you could imagine, the tweet generated even more concerns about who she thought she was supposed to represent in Congress, if she won. Even some current members of Congress and other politicos weighed in. 

Then, too, Valdez spoke about having met with "comrades" in Morena last month. Morena is the leftist ruling party in Mexico. Why was she meeting with them, and does she intend to advocate for what her "comrades" want? 

While the Republican candidate, Melvin Rivera, generally wouldn't have a shot, I wonder if this kind of thing might give him a little help.