Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Shut Down A Conservative Pundit's Debate On Twitter

As anyone with an internet connection and even a slight interest in politics knows, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will swiftly shut down any BS that comes her way. When it comes to her feelings on Ben Shapiro's offer challenging her to a debate, she didn't beat around the bush, either. If you were ever thinking about coming for the rising political star, you might reconsider after you see Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's tweet to Ben Shapiro.

The Democratic congressional candidate took to Twitter on Thursday, Aug. 9 to reject Shapiro's offer after repeated calls for her to take up the request, and threw some shade in the process. In her tweet, Ocasio-Cortez compared the commentator's request to a solicitation from a catcaller on the street, saying she doesn't “owe a response to unsolicited requests from men with bad intentions.”

“Just like catcalling, I don’t owe a response to unsolicited requests from men with bad intentions,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “And also like catcalling, for some reason they feel entitled to one.”

There's a lot to unpack here. While it's unclear if Shapiro actually had bad intentions when he offered the debate to Ocasio-Cortez, she really isn't obligated to respond to the request either way. So at least she's being upfront about it — whether people like what she had to say or not.

Shapiro — who said he would donate $10,000 to Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign if she agreed to debate him during a segment on The Ben Shapiro Show on Aug. 8 — clearly was not a fan of Ocasio-Cortez's comments and immediately fired back at her on Twitter. He wrote:

Discussion and debate are not 'bad intentions.' Slandering someone as a sexist catcaller without reason or evidence does demonstrate cowardice and bad intent, however.

He added, "I’m sure your media sycophants will eat it up."

Ocasio-Cortez, who is running for a House seat in her home state of New York, has become the subject of scrutiny from conservative pundits since June, when she scored a surprising primary victory over Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-New York). Florida Congressman Ron DeSantis, who's running for governor in his state on the Republican ticket, is one of many people in the conservative circle who have recently attacked Ocasio-Cortez on her politics. During a campaign event in Florida on July 21, DeSantis referred to the 28-year-old as "this girl," igniting backlash from many onlookers and Ocasio-Cortez herself.

"You look at this girl Ocasio-Cortez or whatever she is, I mean, she’s in a totally different universe,” he said. "It's basically socialism wrapped in ignorance."

After catching wind of the video, Ocasio-Cortez hit back at DeSantis on Twitter on July 23, writing:

Rep DeSantis, it seems you‘re confused as to 'whatever I am.' I am a Puerto Rican woman. It‘s strange you don’t know what that is, given that ~75,000 Puerto Ricans have relocated to Florida in the 10 mos since [Hurricane] María. But I’m sure these new FL voters appreciate your comments!

Whether it was back then or in the present day, Ocasio-Cortez has made it crystal clear that she'll stand up for herself whenever she feels necessary. And no matter where you stand on the political spectrum, you've gotta respect her for that, 'eh?