AOC "Burned" White House Ethics With A Spot-On Instagram
New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has never shied away from criticism of President Donald Trump. She has publicly denounced the Trump administration's immigration policies, and demanded that Democrats pursue impeachment proceedings against Trump. The freshman congresswoman is also well-known for her wit, and Ocasio-Cortez's Instagram post about White House ethics this week was the perfect burn.
On Sept. 18, Ocasio-Cortez posted an Instagram photo of herself in which she was standing next to a large crate of fire extinguishers as a way to call out the Trump administration. The crate had the words "AOC Fire Extinguisher" spray painted across it, and Ocasio-Cortez captioned the photo with a simple question: "Who do you call when White House ethics are on fire?"
It is unclear what, if any, event prompted Ocasio-Cortez to post the photo, and a representative for her office said they did not have any further context to provide regarding the post. But given that she routinely criticizes the White House and the Trump administration, it doesn't seem too out of place. Most recently, Ocasio-Cortez renewed her calls for Trump's impeachment on Sept. 6, and accused Trump on Sept. 3 of trying to rally support for "super racist immigration policies" in order to distract supporters and critics alike from the "billions of public dollars going to private prison CEOs." In August, Ocasio-Cortez rebuked Trump's claim that he was "the best thing that's ever happened to Puerto Rico," noting that "3,000 Americans died on your watch" during and after Hurricane Maria. The White House did not immediately respond to Elite Daily's request for comment on Ocasio-Cortez's criticisms. And during a hearing on government ethics in February 2019, Ocasio-Cortez generated a lot of attention on social media when she brought up special interest "dark money" in American politics.
Ever since she won her seat during 2018's historic midterm elections, Ocasio-Cortez has not held back from denouncing the Trump administration's policies — and Trump, in turn, has not been silent. In July, Trump attacked Ocasio-Cortez and three other Democratic congresswomen of color by suggesting that they should "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came." All four of the congresswomen in question — Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota — are U.S. citizens. The White House did not previously respond to Elite Daily's request for comment on the remarks, and Trump later doubled down, saying at a July 15 event at the White House, "all I'm saying [is], they want to leave, they can leave." Then, in August, Trump's campaign criticized Ocasio-Cortez in an email following her calls for the elimination of the Electoral College.
"This is our country, not theirs," the Trump campaign told supporters in the email, per NBC News.
Just as she did in her fire extinguisher Instagram post, Ocasio-Cortez issued a firm response to Trump's racist attacks.
"Mr. President, the country I 'come from,' & the country we all swear to, is the United States," Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on July 14.
Ocasio-Cortez has regularly harnessed social media to make politics more accessible to young people — and she is using that platform to take on the president and the White House. If Ocasio-Cortez's fire extinguisher Instagram post proves anything, it's that she has no intention of shying away from criticizing the Trump administration. No matter what it sparks off.
