(This post may contain disputed claims. We make no assertions as to the validity of the information presented by our Opinion Columnist. We are an opinion blog, not a traditional news outlet, and this post should be treated as such. Enjoy.)Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez thought she could score some major points against Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan as the former bartender questioned him on Capitol Hill. Except, the Congresswoman was an epic failure when she bumbled questioning by presenting non-existent evidence of a major oil spill by a pipeline that hasn’t been built. Well, that’s when the 29-year-old got scorched badly. Don’t miss this.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was on a crusade to punish the big, bad Wells Fargo Bank. There is no doubt that corporate banks aren’t always the friend of the little guy, but AOC was so out of line with CEO Tim Sloan, pundits were laughing their butts off on social media.
“Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez blamed the Keystone XL pipeline for leaking about 5,000 barrels of oil in rural South Dakota about two years ago. There’s just one problem: The Keystone XL pipeline has not been built yet,” the Daily Caller reported.
What makes matter worse, the Congresswoman blamed the Wells Fargo CEO for the non-existent oil spill. Yeah, we can’t make this stuff up. You see, Wells Fargo had been one of 17 banks to finance another pipeline, so in AOC’s world, they are to blame for any and all oil spills.
“Ocasio-Cortez probably confused the Keystone XL pipeline with the Keystone pipeline, which has been operating since 2010. Keystone XL is still under construction, but would also bring oil sands from Canada to Nebraska where it would connect to existing pipeline,” the Daily Caller adds.
This caused AOC to start making up hypotheticals to try and score her politically correct points after she realized she got the wrong guy and the wrong pipeline. Finally, she was able to match the Dakota Pipeline to CEO Tim Sloan.
“So, hypothetically, if there was a leak from the Dakota Access Pipeline, why shouldn’t Wells Fargo pay for the cleanup of it, since it paid for the construction of the pipeline itself?” Ocasio-Cortez asked.
Is she kidding? Should the bank who holds your mortgage be responsible for cleaning your kitchen after a grease fire? Should the lender of your auto-loan be responsible for rotating your car tires?
Poor Mr. Sloane kept his cool. “Because we don’t operate the pipeline. We provide financing to the company that is operating the company,” Sloan answered. AOC looks like a fool, but she just keeps on digging herself in deeper.
“Why did Wells Fargo finance this pipeline when it was widely seen to be environmentally unstable?” Cortez said without providing evidence that the pipeline is unstable.
“The reason we were one of the 17 or 19 banks that financed that is because our team reviewed the environmental impact and we concluded it was a risk we were willing to take,” Sloan said, also noting Wells Fargo had an environmental oversight group.
Obviously, the pipeline in question has been cleared by numerous studies, and it’s apparent to everyone Ocasio-Cortez’s research team has really screwed up. She doesn’t even know what pipeline she is talking about.
“The existing Keystone pipeline, however, was responsible for leaking up to 9,700 barrels in South Dakota in 2017. The initial estimate for the spill was about 5,000 barrels or 210,000 gallons of oil. Both Keystone and the planned XL line are operated by Canadian pipeline giant TransCanada. This has nothing to do with CEO Tim Sloan,” the Daily Signal reported.
TransCanada said it repaired the pipeline and cleaned up the spill, Reuters reported in 2018, though the event has been used by environmental activists, like AOC and her cohorts, to gin up opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline.
Well, Americans weighed in on AOC’s latest performance. “Where is she getting her info? Is anyone asking her to back up her statements with factual references? Seems they/we need to start,” tweeted Morgan Garth.
Where is she getting her info? Is anyone asking her to back up her statements with factual references? Seems they/we need to start.
— Morgan Garth (@Bugle_rank87) March 12, 2019
“Soviets use to call people like @AOC #UsefulIdiots People who come across as thinking they are ‘all that’ when actually they are none of that but easily used to get a particular socialist objective obtained. Of course, we know what happened to that 70-year-old baby the #USSR,” tweeted Twitter user “Sojourner.”
Soviets use to call people like @AOC #UsefulIdiots People who come across as thinking they are "all that" when actually they are none of that but easily used to get a particular socialist objective obtained. Of course we know what happened to that 70 year old baby the #USSR
— SoJourner (@SoJournerman) March 12, 2019
“Are we sure that her parents aren’t part of the college scandal. She sure acts like she is uneducated. lol makes no sense how this woman got into Congress, to begin with at least we now know what’s wrong with our country. now we need to fix it,” tweeted Charles Hodge.
Are we sure that her parents aren't part of the college scandal. she sure acts like she is uneducated. lol makes no sense how this woman got into Congress, to begin with at least we now know what's wrong with our country. now we need to fix it.
— Charles Hodge (@MAGACHUCKD) March 13, 2019
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the socialist gift that just keeps on giving. She was ill prepared to question a man like CEO Tim Sloan who could have shamed her for her many mistakes. AOC didn’t even understand the hearing was about financial practices, not risk management.
And her immaturity and lack of understanding of basic concepts point to a bigger problem. Well, she’s in good company with Maxine Waters and Mazie Hirano. Sadly, there’s no IQ test to win a seat in Congress.
