In a candid Instagram story, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed critics who question her foreign policy acumen, all while her fiancé’s snoring provided an unexpected soundtrack. The congresswoman sought to dispel doubts following her underwhelming appearance at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, where she faced censure for her vague responses and perceived lack of international expertise.
Despite the critiques, Ocasio-Cortez used her social media platform to hit back, with her voice slightly hoarse, yet unfazed by the commentary. She seemed unfettered by the criticism, even as her fiancé, Riley Roberts, remained audibly uninterested, snoring in the background.
In response to a suggestion that she should grasp foreign policy before considering a presidential run, Ocasio-Cortez offered a sharp retort. She remarked, “If you think I lack understanding of foreign policy after engaging in extensive discussions about global matters and considering some of the most delicate geopolitical issues today, then perhaps the misunderstanding lies elsewhere.”
Continuing her rebuttal, she jabbed at the previous presidential administration, suggesting that some have grown accustomed to leaders who speak without much forethought. Meanwhile, Roberts carried on with his nap, seemingly unfazed by the discourse around him.
She quipped: ‘If you think I don’t understand foreign policy, because of out of hours of discourse about international affairs, I pause to think about one of the most sensitive geopolitical issues that currently exist on earth, I’m afraid the issue is not my understanding.’
‘Perhaps the problem is you’ve gotten adjusted to a president that never thinks before he speaks,’ Ocasio-Cortez said as Roberts continued to snooze behind her.
She drew criticism from both sides of the aisle when she gave a garbled answer when asked about how the US would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion.
Ocasio-Cortez, who represents parts of the Bronx and Queens, said: ‘Um, you know, I think that I, uh, this is such a, you know, I think that this is a, um, this is of course, a, uh, very longstanding, um, policy of the United States,’ she began.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dismissed those who argued she has a poor grasp of foreign policy during a personal Instagram story with her fiancé snoring in the background
As she responded to a prompt to ‘just understand foreign policy before running for president,’ someone is clearly heard snoring, presumably Ocasio-Cortez’s fiance Riley Roberts (pictured right)
‘And I think what we are hoping for is that we make sure we never get to that point and we want to make sure that we are moving all of our economic, research and our global positions to avoid any such confrontation and for that question to even arise,’ she finished.
That was her response to the question, ‘Would and should the US actually commit US troops to defend Taiwan if China were to move?’
Ocasio-Cortez’s stumble came as she tried to boost her foreign policy chops and will likely come back to haunt her should she ultimately decide to make a White House run.
Other panelists included Matthew Whitaker, the US Ambassador to NATO since April of last year, and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Ocasio-Cortez was likely hoping for a decisive performance in Munich, while also seeking to make a stark contrast with Vice President JD Vance’s appearance at the conference last year.
Last February, Vance castigated European countries for their supposed efforts to erode free speech and free expression, while also demanding they spend more of their own budgets on national defense.
If Ocasio-Cortez runs for president, Vance could be her opponent. In fact, she celebrated a poll in December that had her beating him 51 percent to 49 percent.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York gave halting answers at times to foreign policy questions posed to her during panels at the Munich Security Conference on Friday
She struck a different tone to Vance during her two panels, arguing that the growing gap between the rich and the poor is what is giving way to the rise of authoritarianism around the world.
‘Extreme levels of income inequality lead to social instability,’ she said, adding that countries should get their ‘economic houses in order and deliver material gains for the working class, or else we will fall to a more isolated world governed by authoritarians.’
On other foreign policy questions, Ocasio-Cortez was able to give answers that weren’t as halting.
When asked about whether the US should initiate strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities if diplomacy fails, she was quick to call that ‘a dramatic escalation no one in the world wants to see’.
‘Right now, what the Iranian regime is doing particularly with respect to protesters is a horrific slaughter of, some estimates have it at tens of thousands of people,’ she said. ‘I think that jumping into strikes is, I think that right now we have so much, to me, there’s still so much runway, so much that we can do to avoid that scenario.’
On the topic of the US providing aid to Israel, Ocasio-Cortez was perhaps the most clear.
‘I think that the United States has an obligation to uphold its own laws, particularly Leahy Laws,’ she began.
The Leahy Laws, named after Senator Patrick Leahy, are statutes within the US code that prohibit the Departments of State and Defense from funding or training foreign militaries that commit gross violations of human rights.
‘The idea of completely unconditional aid no matter what one does, does not make sense. I think it enabled a genocide in Gaza, and I think that we have thousands of women and children dead that was completely avoidable,’ Ocasio-Cortez continued.
The topic of her possibly running for president was baked into many of the questions she received on Friday, but she consistently did not take the bait.
Katrin Bennhold, a New York Times reporter who moderated one of the panels Ocasio-Cortez was on, asked her if she would impose a wealth tax or a billionaire’s tax if she became president.
Ocasio-Cortez laughed and shook her head. ‘I don’t think…we have to wait for any one president to impose a wealth tax. I think it needs to be done expeditiously.’
The 36-year-old congresswoman, who met the Constitution’s minimum age requirement to run for president last year, has not announced her intention to run.
She is hugely popular among progressives, but faces an uphill battle to win centrist Democrats and undecided voters should she run for president.
There is also speculation she will run a primary campaign against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
