Ted Cruz And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Team Up To Ban Lawmakers From Lobbying

"Let's make a deal," said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
"You're on," agreed Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

The two lawmakers who have often been at odds found common ground in a place that often highlights polarizing opinions: Twitter. That's where Cruz and Ocasio-Cortez vowed to set aside their differences and work on new lobbying restrictions for lawmakers. Now an unlikely coalition is forming around their joint effort.

It started when Ocasio-Cortez tweeted Thursday morning that members of Congress shouldn't be allowed to become corporate lobbyists.

"At minimum there should be a long wait period," she wrote. Ocasio-Cortez cited a statistic from Public Citizen, in which the advocacy group reported that among former Congress members who move to jobs outside of politics, nearly 60% start lobbying or otherwise influencing federal policy.

It didn't take long for Cruz to chime in.

"Here's something I don't say often: on this point, I AGREE" with Ocasio-Cortez, Cruz stated. He went on to say that he has long called for a lifetime ban on former members of Congress becoming lobbyists.