‘Squad’ Dem Makes A Fool Of Herself On World Stage With Botched Attack Line Against Trump

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez found herself under the spotlight at the Munich Security Conference on Friday — and not in the way she likely hoped.

The New York Democrat, a leading member of the progressive “Squad,” stumbled through answers on U.S. foreign policy and delivered a head-scratching line about geography while attempting to take a swipe at President Donald Trump.

During a panel discussion moderated by Bloomberg’s Francine Lacqua, Ocasio-Cortez was pressed on whether the United States should defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion. With Beijing ramping up military pressure and conducting large-scale drills around the self-governing island in recent months, the question was hardly theoretical.

Instead of offering a clear position, the congresswoman appeared to struggle.

“Um, you know, I think that this is such a, you know, I think that this is, this is of course a very longstanding policy of the United States,” Ocasio-Cortez said.

“What we are hoping for is that we want to make sure that we never get to that point,” she added.

She continued, “And we want to make sure that we are moving in all of our economic research and our global positions to avoid any such confrontation, and for that question to even arise.”

The response stopped short of committing to military defense, even as China has described its recent war games as a “stern warning” following the Trump administration’s approval of an $11 billion arms package to Taiwan. For decades, Washington has maintained a policy of strategic ambiguity, signaling support for Taiwan without explicitly guaranteeing intervention.

Ocasio-Cortez’s appearance in Germany also included a broader critique of Trump’s foreign policy. When asked to identify the most significant shift under his leadership, she appeared unsure how to respond.

“The single-biggest?” she said, laughing lightly as she sought clarification.

She then pivoted to a wider commentary.

“Well, I think zooming out beyond just this presidential administration,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I think that what we are seeing is, between President Trump’s first administration pulling out of long-standing international agreements; then you have President Biden, who is opting back into some of them, such as, for example, with the Paris Climate Accords, and then you have President Trump that’s elected again, I think what we are seeing now is this idea that US foreign policy is,  and some of our more basic and foundational values-based commitments seem to be enacted based on the partisanship of whoever is elected.”

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She added that Trump has played “hokey-pokey” with “many of our commitments,” including foreign aid and the Paris agreement.

But it was a separate line about Venezuela that drew some of the sharpest reactions online.

Hey @AOC, Venezuela is entirely above the equator. https://t.co/CROQY10yMh

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) February 16, 2026

Criticizing U.S. policy toward Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Ocasio-Cortez said: “Maduro canceled elections. He was an anti-democratic leader. That doesn’t mean that we can kidnap a head of state and engage in acts of war just because the nation is below the equator.”

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Observers quickly pointed out that Venezuela is entirely above the equator.

The exchange unfolded as world leaders met to address rising global tensions, including Russia’s war in Ukraine and China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific. For a lawmaker rumored by some allies to have national ambitions in 2028, the performance ensured she would leave Munich with attention — though not necessarily the kind her supporters were hoping for.

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