The 2024 presidential election is barely in the books, and speculation has already turned to who might be interested in throwing their hat in the ring for the top job in the 2028 cycle.

According to growing scuttlebutt in D.C. and elsewhere, far-left Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) could well quit the House of Representatives and run for president, a scenario that has drawn a range of reactions, including a warning from a former Trump administration official, as The Hill reports.

Crowley weighs in

As surprising discussions of a potential AOC run for the White House began to swirl in recent days, commentators from both sides of the aisle began to weigh in with their opinions, both good and bad.

Among those contemplating the firebrand Democrat's possible entry into the 2028 race was Monica Crowley, a former Treasury Department official during Donald Trump's first term in office.

Speaking to guest host Lisa Booth as part of an appearance on Fox News' The Ingraham Angle, Crowley cautioned against selling the outspoken Democrat short.

Noting AOC's admirable level of “grassroots support,” Crowley added that the congresswoman was “an early adopter of social media” capable of “connecting directly to voters.”

Issuing a “word of warning” to Republicans that they must not underestimate the “young...vibrant...attractive” Ocasio-Cortez, Crowley also suggested that, in the end, the GOP would likely relish the opportunity to go up against a member of the “revolutionary left,” as the former Trump official described the liberal lawmaker.

“Disaster” in the making?

Despite Crowley's complimentary words about AOC, not everyone was quite as bullish on her appeal as a potential candidate in the next presidential cycle.

Doug Schoen, a former adviser to President Bill Clinton, did not hold back when it came to assessing the prospect of a run from Ocasio-Cortez, as the Washington Examiner reports.

Schoen said on Friday, “I believe the Democratic Party needs to move to the center on cultural issues and on fiscal issues, and be more fiscally disciplined, and AOC represents the opposite.”

He went on, “I think if she runs, it would be a disaster for the party."

Throwing additional cold water on the congresswoman's hopes of securing her party's nod in ahead of the next election, Schoen remarked, “I think her chance of getting nominated would be nil.”

Will she or won't she?

Though speculation about AOC's future plans seemed to come out of nowhere in recent days, ex-Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz said of his former colleague, “Alex has told people she's running in 2028 since 2019.”

Whether the idea of an Ocasio-Cortez presidential candidacy will gain real traction and develop into an actual campaign, or it is simply the wishful thinking of a cadre of far-left progressives, only time will tell.