Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is at it again. The progressive firebrand from New York City recently took to Instagram Live, unleashing a fiery attack on Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and CEO of groundbreaking companies like Tesla and SpaceX. In a rant that quickly went viral, Ocasio-Cortez called Musk “one of the most unintelligent billionaires” she’s ever seen. And, predictably, she’s catching flak for her outrageous remarks.
“He’s probably one of the most unintelligent billionaires I have ever met or seen or witnessed,” Ocasio-Cortez fumed during her Instagram session. “This dude is not smart.” She went on to criticize Musk’s efforts to reform government spending, which she and her Democrat allies have vehemently opposed. She even suggested that Musk’s lack of intelligence and expertise poses a dangerous threat, despite his track record of innovation and success.
But let’s take a step back for a moment. Musk’s accomplishments are nothing short of extraordinary. He has built multiple successful companies from the ground up, including Zip2, PayPal, Tesla, and SpaceX. Under his leadership, SpaceX has revolutionized space travel, developing reusable rockets and achieving milestones that were once thought impossible. Tesla has led the charge in electric vehicles, and Musk’s ventures have pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in technology and engineering.
Is this really the “unintelligent” billionaire that Ocasio-Cortez claims to know? Biographer Walter Isaacson, who has spent years chronicling Musk’s life, said that Musk is “a genius when it comes to material properties, when it comes to engineering.” While Musk may not be a “genius” when it comes to human emotions—something Ocasio-Cortez may find hard to relate to—his brilliance in innovation and engineering is undeniable.
Ocasio-Cortez’s criticism of Musk comes as he has sought to overhaul government operations, particularly with his Department of Government Efficiency team. This group is scrutinizing the Treasury Department and reviewing federal payment systems—a move that has triggered an uproar among Democrats. Ocasio-Cortez, in typical fashion, has been vocal in her opposition. She’s even accused Republicans of “not doing their homework” and lamented that “19-year-olds” have been put in charge of government scrutiny.
But here’s the truth: while Ocasio-Cortez criticizes Musk’s approach to government reform, her party has failed to offer any real solutions. Instead of addressing the growing concerns of taxpayers and government inefficiency, she’s focused on personal attacks against Musk. It’s almost as if Ocasio-Cortez would rather defend the status quo than embrace the reforms that Musk and other leaders are pushing for.
Ocasio-Cortez also tried to widen the gap between Musk and former President Donald Trump, suggesting that Musk is pulling Trump’s strings. “What Donald Trump has done is that he has completely given up his power and handed a lot of it over to Elon Musk,” she claimed. It’s an attempt to undermine both men, but her argument falls flat when we remember that Musk is the one actually making strides in technology, while Ocasio-Cortez’s biggest accomplishment is pushing for higher taxes and a Green New Deal that would cripple the economy.
Critics have had a field day with Ocasio-Cortez’s comments. Conservative pundit Charlie Kirk quipped, “AOC calling Elon Musk ‘unintelligent’ might actually be the dumbest thing she has ever said, which is really saying something.” Others have pointed out that while Ocasio-Cortez criticizes Musk’s intellect, he’s out there literally working toward making humanity a multi-planetary species. Meanwhile, she seems more concerned with Instagram videos and grandstanding.
At the end of the day, Ocasio-Cortez’s latest tirade against Musk only highlights her inability to engage in substantive policy debate. If she’s going to continue to attack one of the greatest innovators of our time, maybe she should first ask herself: who’s really the “unintelligent” one here?
