Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is facing backlash after arguing this week that becoming a billionaire through hard work alone is a “myth.”
Speaking Thursday on comedian Ilana Glazer’s podcast, It’s Open, the New York congresswoman said extreme wealth is not something a person can honestly “earn.”
“You can’t earn a billion dollars. You just can’t earn that,” Ocasio-Cortez said during the interview. “You can get market power, you can break rules, you can do all sorts of things.”
She went on to argue that massive fortunes are often built through exploitation rather than merit.
“You can abuse labor laws, you can pay people less than what they’re worth,” she continued. “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 comments quickly spread online, drawing criticism from conservatives, business figures, and others who accused the congresswoman of dismissing entrepreneurship and economic success.
Later Thursday, Ocasio-Cortez doubled down in a post on X, shifting the conversation toward wage theft and worker protections.
“The single largest form of theft in America is wage theft,” she wrote. “$50 billion a year are stolen from American workers.”
She added that critics attack her personally to avoid discussing broader labor issues.
“Some people get enraged that I draw attention to this,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote. “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.”
Critics responded swiftly.
“There are a remarkable number of people who proceed from the premise ‘I could never do anything of a certain value’ to the conclusion ‘no one could do something of that value,’” one X user wrote. “Those people are narcissists.”
Rafael Mangual of the Manhattan Institute also pushed back on the congresswoman’s comments.
“No, Alexandria … YOU can’t earn a billion dollars,” Mangual posted. “Those who can and have don’t share the limits of your knowledge and imagination.”
Author Helen Raleigh framed the issue as a broader ideological divide over capitalism and socialism.
“Socialists don’t run businesses,” Raleigh wrote. “They produce nothing valuable or desirable that others want. They enrich themselves only by taking from others by force.”
Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Erik Voorhees also joined the criticism, arguing that government salaries are funded by taxpayers.
Ocasio-Cortez, who represents parts of the Bronx and Queens and holds a degree in economics and international relations, has become one of the Democratic Party’s most recognizable progressive voices since entering Congress in 2019.
Her comments come as speculation continues about her political future. Some Democrats and political observers have floated her name as a possible 2028 presidential contender, while others believe she could eventually challenge Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in New York.
The debate over billionaire wealth, labor practices, and economic fairness has long divided Americans politically, and Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks once again placed her at the center of that national argument.
