United States Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. has made plenty of headlines in her short time as a member of Congress, where she became the youngest woman ever elected after a stunning victory in her primary. On Thursday, February 22, she dropped by the season premiere of Showtime’s Desus & Mero to discuss her transition from the Bronx to Washington, D.C. and a number of other issues.
Ocasio-Cortez sat down with hosts Desus Nice and The Kid Mero, also from the Bronx, to take on the topics of Twitter trolls and to explain her Green New Deal and her proposed tax increase for the wealthy.
A big part of Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal that caught the attention of detractors was the ban on “cow emissions” aka cow farts. She attempted to explain her stance.
“In the deal, what we talk about, and it’s true, is that we need to take a look at factory farming, you know? Period. It’s wild,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “And so it’s not to say you get rid of agriculture, it’s not to say we’re gonna force everybody to go vegan or anything crazy like that. But it’s to say, ‘Listen, we gotta address factory farming. Maybe we shouldn’t be eating a hamburger for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Like, let’s keep it real.
“But we have to take a look at everything, and what we need to realize about climate change is about every choice that we make in our lives, you know?”
The Democratic socialist also explained her 70 percent marginal tax rate which would only impact people who make $10 million a year.
“It really comes down to the question of, ‘Isn’t $10 million enough?’ Like, when does it stop?” she explained. “At what point is it amoral that we’re building Jeff Bezos a helipad when we have the most amount of homeless people in New York City?”
Desus and Mero also visited Ocasio-Cortez in D.C. where they helped redecorate her office with some Bronx flair.
You can watch the full interview below beginning at the 17:40 mark.
In this weekly late-night series, Desus Nice and The Kid MERO speak off the cuff and chat with guests at the intersection of pop culture, sports, music, politics and more. The quick-witted duo delivers smart and comedic commentary on any and all topics.
