Just a brief look-in on a major American magazine “normalizing bigotry,” as Seth Mandel says of Omar’s inclusion. RS couldn’t find one other “fresh face” among the dozens of Democratic women elected to the House in November to promote besides a Jew-baiter?

Also, what did poor Jahana Hayes do to be included among this rogues’ gallery? If the theme is “freshmen who hate Israel,” Rashida Tlaib obviously should have been featured instead.

I know: Rolling Stone, exercising bad judgment? When has that ever happened?

.@SpeakerPelosi, @AOC, @IlhanMN, and @RepJahanaHayes together on the March cover of @RollingStone pic.twitter.com/SMwMp2uqV9

— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) February 27, 2019

Can’t fault RS for including Ocasio-Cortez, who’s a bona fide superstar for better or worse. (Plus, her enthusiasm about Jeremy Corbyn checks the anti-Israel box.) But if all they’re trying to do is show that the new Dem class includes more women and minorities in the past, they had other reps they could have featured: Ayanna Pressley, Lauren Underwood (who’s five years younger than Omar), Deb Haaland, Sharice Davids, Sylvia Garcia, Xochitl Torres Small, etc. If they wanted to be really daring they could have tossed a white woman into the mix like Mikie Sherrill, who’s touted as a rising star. They wanted Omar, I assume, because her hijab is arresting shorthand for the point they trying to make about ethnic and gender diversity within the caucus — so arresting that she can say pretty much anything and it won’t cost her their good graces. Which is the same way the Democratic leadership views her, not coincidentally.

But let’s be fair. The theme is “Women Shaping the Future” and there’s no question that Omar’s hostility to Israel more accurately represents the Democratic base than Pelosi’s pro-Israel views. Rolling Stone may be making a trenchant point about the party’s direction by including Omar. Just not the one they intended to.