Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is being absolutely trashed online for saying that no one can legitimately become a billionaire.
“You can’t earn a billion dollars. You just can’t earn that,” the democratic socialist congresswoman told comedian Ilana Glazer on an episode of the “It’s Open” podcast.
“You can get market power, you can break rules, you can do all sorts of things,” AOC said. “You can abuse labor laws, you can pay people less than what they’re worth. But you can’t earn that, right? And so you have to create a myth that — since you didn’t earn that, you have to create a myth of earning it.”
The Democrat seemed laser focused on billionaires in business without commenting on billionaire entertainers like Taylor Swift. When the critics started calling her out, AOC doubled down in an X post she shared Thursday evening.
“The single largest form of theft in America is wage theft. $50 billion a year are stolen from American workers,” she wrote.
“Some people get enraged that I draw attention to this. That’s on them. Let them call me shrill, dumb, inexperienced, girly, uneducated – these folks will say anything to distract from or undercut the truth that working people are getting screwed, and giving people a fair shake means we must have a grown conversation about reigning in abuse of power.”
Commenters with common sense pointed out the multiple flaws in her argument.
“Lies. Billionaires get rich by innovating and risk-taking, offering new and better goods and services at prices people are willing to pay. Government makes cash through confiscation. AOC’s conspiratorial, envious view of the world leads to impoverishment and tyranny,” Ben Shapiro, the editor emeritus of The Daily Wire, wrote.
“Socialists don’t run businesses,” author Helen Raleigh wrote. “They produce nothing valuable or desirable that others want. They enrich themselves only by taking from others by force. Therefore, they don’t understand how entrepreneurs can be so wildly successful in a free market simply by providing goods or services many people want and are willing to pay for.”
“What a naive and wrong point of view. So much of leftist politics and thinking these days is about justifying envy,” entrepreneur and venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale agreed. “I’ve co-founded six different multi-billion dollar companies, with more on the way. AOC perhaps isn’t bright enough to make a lot of money without massive grift – sure. But 10000’s who worked with me are rich; some are also billionaires!”
He added, “Our innovation sector is the best in the world, solving problems and growing the pie with US talent for a brighter future for all. I’m aligned against cronyism. But demonizing success is totally unAmerican.”
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