Jan 16, 2019 - Economy & Business

Streams of Phoenix's "Lisztomania" triple after AOC dancing video

Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images

Phoenix's 2009 song "Lisztomania" saw its on-demand streaming numbers jump 192%, Billboard reports, after its inclusion in a 2010 video featuring Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) dancing while in college that resurfaced online earlier this month as a smear attempt by an anonymous right-leaning Twitter account.

Why it matters: The stats only underscore the unbelievable media power of the 29-year-old House freshman. The video, meant to garner negative press on the eve of her swearing-in, backfired as an opposition play and took on new life as a meme, nearly tripling the consumption of a song approaching its 10th anniversary.

Go deeper: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has more Twitter power than media, establishment

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Axios
Updated 4 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Politics: Pence chief of staff Marc Short tests positive for coronavirus — COVID-19 looms over White House Halloween celebrations
  2. Health: Fauci says maybe we should mandate masks if people don't wear them — America was sick well before it ever got COVID-19
  3. World: Polish President Andrzej Duda tests positive for COVID-19.
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Jonathan Swan, Mike Allen
8 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Pence chief of staff Marc Short tests positive for coronavirus

Marc Short with Katie Miller, Vice President Pence's communications director, in March. Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times via Reuters

Marc Short, Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff, tested positive for the coronavirus Saturday and is quarantining, according to a White House statement.

Why it matters: Short is Pence's closest aide, and was one of the most powerful forces on the White House coronavirus task force.

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Rebecca Falconer
10 hours ago - World

Opposition leader Leopoldo López flees Venezuela

Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo López outside the Spanish embassy in Caracas, in 2019. Photo: Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images

Leopoldo López, a former political prisoner and prominent Venezuelan opposition leader, has left the country, his Popular Will party confirmed in a statement Saturday.

Why it matters: He's been highly influential in the push to oust President Nicolás Maduro's regime and a mentor to opposition leader Juan Guaidó. He'd been in the Spanish ambassador's Caracas residence since escaping house arrest in April 2019 following a failed military uprising.

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