# Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Cannot Afford to Move to Washington **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 9, 2018, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263 "2018-11-09T21:47:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/181 "2018-11-13T16:44:30Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > She announced her candidacy on May 16, 2017, more than 18 months before she is to take office. She couldn’t save up enough money for a few months rent in D.C. in all that time? > [@Shodan](#): > > The whole point of her economic platform is how to spend Other People’s Money. Who’s got time to worry about anything else? > > Regards, > Shodan It’s pretty hilarious that you guys choose to ignore the fact that she did save money and this problem is already being handled. It’s in the short excerpt being discussed and has been pointed out numerous times in this thread but nope, “ha ha she can’t save money. Boo hoo”. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/182 "2018-11-13T17:01:07Z")
She probably blew all her savings on an original edition of \*Das Kapital. \* ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/183 "2018-11-13T17:07:04Z")
> [@Not\_Carlson](#): > > Those following should already see the dishonesty of this denial. Do not question other posters’ honesty in this forum. [/moderating] ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/184 "2018-11-13T17:07:34Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > She probably blew all her savings on an original edition of \*Das Kapital. \* Lol. Limousine Liberals, amiright? ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/185 "2018-11-13T18:00:50Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > No, it’s not irrelevant. She is complaining about how hard things are taking up a gig that pays a lot of money. Boo fucking hoo. > You think nobody would float a loan to a future Congressmember? :rolleyes: > You are missing the point. Complaining about how hard life is when you are about to earn a very large salary means that you are [list=a][li]Bad with money [_]stupid, or [_]a socialist.[/list]Guess what? She’s scored a trifecta.[/li] > Regards, > Shodan She didn’t complain. She commented, briefly, in a puff piece. It’s like she said “Wow, with this new job I will be traveling a lot and I’ve really had to rethink my wardrobe in and luggage situation. I got it handled, but it was weird.” and you all are like “OMG, she can’t even pack her own bag, she’s totally incompetent”. ---
**Author:** ![sps49sd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@sps49sd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sps49sd)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/186 "2018-11-13T18:24:20Z")
Give them a Congressional barracks. Just like the barracks our armed forces personnel get. ---
**Author:** ![CaptMurdock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/captmurdock/32/11736_2.png) [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/187 "2018-11-13T18:26:24Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > She probably blew all her savings on an original edition of \*Das Kapital. \* At least AOC probably knows what _Das Kapital_ is. Your Orange Julius Caesar probably thinks it’s a German-language movie about a submersible bank. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/188 "2018-11-13T18:49:28Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > You are missing the point. Complaining about how hard life is when you are about to earn a very large salary means that you are [list=a][li]Bad with money [_]stupid, or [_]a socialist.[/list]Guess what? She’s scored a trifecta.[/li] > Regards, > Shodan Which of these options applies [here](http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/08/indicted-pol-blames-wife-complains-about-usd174-000-salary.html)? > [@](#): > > Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., who has pleaded not guilty to charges of misusing campaign money to pay for personal items, said Thursday his $174,000 annual salary does not provide him with enough money to live in his Southern California congressional district. _Bonus Question:_ Identify one of the fundamental differences between that case and the one that is the main subject of the thread. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/189 "2018-11-13T19:01:33Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Which of these options applies [here](http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/08/indicted-pol-blames-wife-complains-about-usd174-000-salary.html)? A and b. > [@](#): > > _Bonus Question:_ Identify one of the fundamental differences between that case and the one that is the main subject of the thread. Ocasio-Cortez hasn’t been indicted. At least, not yet. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![WillFarnaby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/willfarnaby/32/514_2.png) [@WillFarnaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WillFarnaby)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/190 "2018-11-13T19:10:43Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > $174k, $500k, it’s irrelevant. This is money she won’t have for several months. She is not “the rich” today. You suggest she do what other people do who don’t make $174k. Like what I do, perhaps? Work a full-time job to cover my living expenses? She already has a more than full-time job that she isn’t getting paid for until January. She’s already here for freshman orientation. Borrow money? Not everyone can. And I don’t think anyone should have to borrow money in order to do the job they were elected to do. If a bonus is inappropriate, there are other outlay-neutral options, e.g. an advance. Which I already mentioned but you conveniently skipped over in your post. It’s not the only option. She is supposed to be a public “servant”. It’s not like she didn’t campaign for the job and it was thrust upon her. > [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > So essentially, if you’re poor, you don’t get to lead. If you are bad with money you shouldn’t manage others money. This should be very easy to understand. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/191 "2018-11-13T19:41:32Z")
> [@WillFarnaby](#): > > If you are bad with money you shouldn’t manage others money. This should be very easy to understand. Thomas Jefferson negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, which is probably the best real estate deal in the history of our country. [Yet he struggled with his personal finances all his life.](https://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/debt) > [@](#): > > While debt was not unusual for Virginia planters of his time, his eventually grew so ponderous that his family were forced to sell much of his property, including Monticello, after Jefferson’s death. His grandson and executor of his estate, Thomas Jefferson Randolph, posted an advertisement for his estate sale, indicating that Jefferson’s debts at his death amounted to $107,000. Converting this figure into a modern estimate is an inexact process at best, but it would probably be somewhere between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000. [Abraham Lincoln also filed for bankruptcy.](https://bankruptcy.uslegal.com/profilesfamousbankruptcies/abraham-lincoln/) ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/192 "2018-11-13T19:43:21Z")
Let’s all play a fun game where we compare what Shodan writes: [quote=“Shodan, post:179, topic:824263”] No, it’s not irrelevant. She is complaining about how hard things are taking up a gig that pays a lot of money. Boo fucking hoo. You think nobody would float a loan to a future Congressmember? :rolleyes: You are missing the point. Complaining about how hard life is when you are about to earn a very large salary means that you are [list=a][li]Bad with money [_]stupid, or [_]a socialist.[/list]Guess what? She’s scored a trifecta.[/li][/QUOTE] …to reality: > [@](#): > > “It really is like high school orientation,” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said. “It’s like you pick your committees the way you pick your courses. And people ask, like, little logistical things like, ‘where you going to live?’” > > No decision there yet, she said. “Honestly, I’ve been so focused on today that I’m not trying to count my chickens before they’re hatched.” > > Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said the transition period will be “very unusual, because I can’t really take a salary. I have three months without a salary before I’m a member of Congress. So, how do I get an apartment? Those little things are very real.” She said she saved money before leaving her job at the restaurant, and planned accordingly with her partner. “We’re kind of just dealing with the logistics of it day by day, but I’ve really been just kind of squirreling away and then hoping that gets me to January.” One of these things is not like the other. \*\* Shodan\*\*, if your goal is to make Ocasio-Cortez look reasonable, by all means continue. If not, please stop helping. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/193 "2018-11-13T19:44:34Z")
I don’t think being irresponsible with one’s personal finances necessarily means someone is unfit to make financial policy in government. Kind of like how many doctors and nurses smoke cigarettes despite knowing full well what they do to one’s body. From a skill perspective, they’re probably still perfectly competent doctors and nurses when they are treating patients. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/194 "2018-11-13T19:48:17Z")
> [@WillFarnaby](#): > > She is supposed to be a public “servant”. It’s not like she didn’t campaign for the job and it was thrust upon her. We get it. More barriers to keep the scrubs out. I’m twirling my mustache from just thinking about it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/195 "2018-11-13T19:54:43Z")
Heck, Trump is _terrible_ with money, and we didn’t let that stop us from electing him. And AOC doesn’t plan on spending other people’s money. That’s also getting her mixed up with Trump. Her plan is for how to spend _our_ money. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/196 "2018-11-13T19:56:45Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > A and b. > Ocasio-Cortez hasn’t been indicted. At least, not yet. 1/2 point awarded for an answer related to one of the two possible correct answers: 1. There is no indication of Ocasio-Cortez illicitly dipping into the till to supplement her personal finances. 2. Ocasio-Cortez does not as yet (and certainly not for almost a full decade like Hunter) have access to a Congressional salary. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/197 "2018-11-13T19:58:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Heck, Trump is _terrible_ with money, and we didn’t let that stop us from electing him. > > And AOC doesn’t plan on spending other people’s money. That’s also getting her mixed up with Trump. Her plan is for how to spend _our_ money. Maybe AOC should announce that Mexico will pay for everything. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/198 "2018-11-13T20:38:02Z")
I agree that criticizing her for not having much money is misplaced. Frankly, it’s nice to see people who don’t come from a monied background make it in politics. Besides, we already have lots to criticize her for. For example, making Boston University look bad by being ignorant of basic economics despite supposedly having a degree in the subject. And of course, being a socialist. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/199 "2018-11-13T20:47:36Z")
Kinda takes the fun out of name-calling someone a “socialist” when they self-identify as such, eh? Little bit? ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Economist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c89c15/32.png) [@Evil\_Economist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Economist)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2018, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263/200 "2018-11-13T20:56:07Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > She announced her candidacy on May 16, 2017, more than 18 months before she is to take office. She couldn’t save up enough money for a few months rent in D.C. in all that time? > [@](#): > > …She said she saved money before leaving her job at the restaurant, and planned accordingly with her partner. Wonder why you couldn’t be bothered to educate yourself about the thing you have such a strong opinion about… Also curious how much you could save on a 26k salary in 18 months, living in the most expensive city in the US. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-cannot-afford-to-move-to-washington/824263.md?page=11)