Ocasio-Cortez welcomes Trump's Evita comparison

Star US lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Sunday appeared to welcome a comparison President Donald Trump reportedly draws in an upcoming book between her and Argentina's iconic Eva Perón.

“I know that, like every woman of the people, I have more strength than I appear to have”, Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter, following comments Trump made in a book "American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republica Civil War" by Tim Alberta. The book is set for release on July 16.

Quoting the woman otherwise known as Evita, Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Twitter: “I had watched for many years and seen how a few rich families held much of Argentina's wealth and power in their hands. So the government brought in an eight hour working day, sickness pay and fair wages to give poor workers a fair go.”

The lawmaker represents Queens in the national Congress, having defeated Democrat power player Joe Crowley in 2018. In her brief time in office, the 29-year-old has attracted the ire of the likes of Trump and news network Fox News. She was the youngest woman to be elected to Congress.

It's not the first time Ocasio-Cortez has been compared to Argentina's former first-lady, herself a controversial figure.

"I pray that Americans don’t fall for politicians like the one that just bobbed up to the surface, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez", US academic and write John Zmirak wrote in June 2018 in The Stream.

"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the frozen embryo love-child of Hugo Chavez and Evita Peron", he charged.

Trump's "favourite Broadway show is Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber, starring Patti Lupone", the Guardian reported, citing a 2004 interview. "I saw it six times, mostly with [his first wife] Ivana".

Commentators in the US have also compared Trump to Evita, with their shared populist overtones.