Not only did Donald Trump avoid answering half the questions he was asked during the second and last presidential debate Thursday night, but he decided to name-drop Democratic representatives in Congress. In an attempt to criticize Joe Biden during a discussion on the climate crisis involving the Green New Deal, Trump said: "You know who developed it [the Green New Deal]? AOC plus three.”
Trump was referring to Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, nicknamed AOC, in addition to other freshmen female Congress members including Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib. The four women have shown resilience throughout the multiple attacks Trump has subjected them to. He has often used the phrase “AOC plus three” in attempts to belittle the unstoppable and unapologetic group known nationally as “the Squad.”
"They know nothing about the climate,” Trump continued. “I mean she's got a good line of stuff but she knows nothing about the climate, and they're all hopping through hoops for AOC plus three. Not a real plan, it costs 100 trillion dollars." Trump, a longtime denier of the climate crisis, continued his rant and called the Green New Deal “the craziest plan that anybody has ever seen.”
Biden appointed Ocasio-Cortez as co-chair of his climate policy task force in May. With her strong following, the move was seen as an attempt to appeal to progressives that supported the Green New Deal. Following her appointment, the task force released a series of proposals including recommending that carbon pollution from power plants be eliminated by 2035 through an increase in clean energy resources.
Of course, being the savvy person she is, Ocasio-Cortez replied to Trump on Twitter in the best way possible—with corrections and facts.
"It's actually AOC plus 115 because that's how many House and Senate members have cosponsored the most ambitious climate legislation in American history," she wrote, adding that she is grateful for each member of Congress who supported the Green New Deal.
But that’s not the only comment Ocasio-Cortez replied to. In response to Trump’s comment that “she's got a good line of stuff,” AOC humorously shared some nice merch.
*Casually heads over to her site to shop*
In addition to her fire responses, Ocasio-Cortez and the three other marvelous women of the Squad shared a group photo. In the photo, the four women can be seen laughing together (props to the photographer for taking such a beautiful and natural shot). If this doesn't make you feel all warm and sentimental inside, I don't know what will.
Each member of the Squad shared the photo with a different caption celebrating their sisterhood.
“Joy is an act of resistance,” Omar tweeted.
“Living in his head rent free is something,” Pressley tweeted. Her tweet included a link to a page, iwillvote.com, that allows individuals to access resources to voting, including checking if they are registered and registering to vote.
Tlaib used a common and spiritual Islamic term to express the love the picture depicted: “Mashallah.” The term is used as a compliment, admiring something God has willed or created. “This is real sisterhood, and we are just getting stronger. #MashAllah," Tlaib wrote.
Noting the number of times Trump brought her up during the debate, Ocasio-Cortez noted that prior to being a congresswoman she could have never imagined a president repeatedly mentioning her name. There’s that humor again:
And of course, touching on the importance of names and correctly pronouncing them, Ocasio-Cortez reminded Trump and others who refuse to listen that AOC is a nickname she was given by the community and her constituents, to be used by them—not by officials. She has repeatedly expressed this, noting that colleagues and others who use her name professionally should show respect.
“I wonder if Republicans understand how much they advertise their disrespect of women in debates when they consistently call women members of Congress by nicknames or first names while using titles & last names when referring to men of = stature,” she said. “Women notice. It conveys a lot.”
During the vice presidential debate, Ocasio-Cortez tweeted something similar when she called out Vice President Mike Pence for referring to her as AOC, instead of her full name. "For the record @Mike_Pence, it's Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez to you," she said.
Ocasio-Cortez has come under fire from conservatives since the first day she stepped into the House. Many Republicans seem to be jealous that Ocasio-Cortez not only appeals to younger generations but has a large group of dedicated supporters. This is in part due to Ocasio-Cortez’s energetic and honest persona.
She not only is unapologetic in her words but makes efforts to connect with younger audiences and engage them in political action. On Tuesday, the young congresswoman made an appearance with colleague Omar on the popular gaming service Twitch, to encourage young people to vote in the upcoming election
Her livestream of the game “Among Us” garnered more than 400,000 views. "Holy cow ... Can y'all hear me?," Ocasio-Cortez said while playing. "This is pretty wild. I'm pretty excited.” Despite being relatively new to the streaming service, Ocasio-Cortez has already reached 545,00 followers and more than 4.5 million views on her first video, which streamed last year. According to a Twitch spokesperson, data confirms that her Tuesday stream is among the 20 biggest streams ever on the site.
