Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a.k.a AOC, renewed attention to her criticism of billionaires earlier this month. In a recent interview, the Democrat claimed that they don’t earn money ethically. She highlighted that billionaires relied on other means and created a “myth” about how they earned. Her comments sparked widespread backlash, with Joe Rogan being the latest to criticize the politician and activist through his podcast.
Joe Rogan reacts to AOC’s ‘billionaire’ claims
Rogan accused AOC of promoting a narrative common among Democratic socialists when it came to billionaires and their means of accumulating wealth.
On the most recent episode of his podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” the podcaster, who admitted he wasn’t a businessman before quickly clarifying he was in “some weird way,” said that the idea that it was “easy” to become a billionaire and that they were problematic for not paying “their fair share” was “weird.”
The UFC color commentator added that looking at “actual numbers of the tax base,” the level of contribution by billionaires, and the number of jobs they provide, helped push such a narrative.
Rogan acknowledged that billionaires earn more compared to other people. However, he stressed that an ordinary earner could still build their wealth like them. He emphasized America’s great skill in this area. “You can come from nothing and become incredibly wealthy,” he noted.
The former television host pointed out that people simply assume someone making a huge amount of money “stole it” or “robbed someone.” He continued, “This is a narrative that gets pushed along Democratic socialists, that no one achieves that. I think I literally heard AOC say this recently. That no one achieves substantial wealth without somehow or another victimizing other people.”
Rogan’s comments come after AOC suggested on Ilana Glazer’s “It’s Open” podcast that it was impossible to actually “earn a billion dollars.”
Supporting her claim, she highlighted methods that facilitate immense wealth gains. “You can get market power, you can break rules,” she shared. “You can do all sorts of things; you can abuse labor laws, you can pay people less than what they’re worth.”
AOC added that, since earning billions was impossible, a “myth” about it was created.
Originally reported by Abdul Azim Naushad on Mandatory.