Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has threatened to quit Twitter after Elon Musk promoted a “sick” account impersonating the Democratic politician.
The New York congresswoman said that she was “assessing” what to do after the billionaire interacted with the fake account on his social media platform.
“FYI there’s a fake account on here impersonating me and going viral. The Twitter CEO has engaged it, boosting visibility,” Ms Ocasio-Cortez tweeted on Tuesday.
“It is releasing false policy statements and gaining spread. I am assessing with my team how to move forward. In the meantime, be careful of what you see.”
Ms Ocasio-Cortez reacted after Mr Musk, with whom she has had a series of public spats on Twitter, responded with a flames emoji to the fake AOC account tweeting, “This might be the wine walking but I’ve got a crush on (Elon Musk).
“This is disgusting even for Elon,” tweeted journalist Aaron Rupar, who Ms Ocasio-Cortez’s response.
this is disgusting even for Elon
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 30, 2023
(in case it's not clear, the "verified" account is not actually AOC) pic.twitter.com/t0yIvRXYeo
Last month, Ms Ocasio-Cortez hit out at Mr Musk as Twitter removed blue ticks and said the move could pave the way “for major potential harm”.
When the Twitter boss announced last November that those who want to retain their blue ticks must pay $8 to the company, Ms Ocasio-Cortez mocked the move.
FYI there’s a fake account on here impersonating me and going viral. The Twitter CEO has engaged it, boosting visibility.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 30, 2023
It is releasing false policy statements and gaining spread.
I am assessing with my team how to move forward. In the meantime, be careful of what you see.
“Lmao at a billionaire earnestly trying to sell people on the idea that ‘free speech’ is actually an $8/mo subscription plan,” she tweeted.
The businessman then replied, “Your feedback is appreciated, now pay $8.”
Lmao at a billionaire earnestly trying to sell people on the idea that “free speech” is actually a $8/mo subscription plan
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 2, 2022
The congresswoman has also previously claimed Mr Musk had meddled with her account. Ms Ocasio-Cortez complained that following a public argument, her Twitter account had seemingly stopped working properly.
“Yo (Elon Musk) while I have your attention, why should people pay $8 just for their app to get bricked when they say something you don’t like?” she tweeted.
Mr Musk replied back at the Democrat and said, “What can I say? It was a naked abuse of power.”
In December last year, Ms Ocasio-Cortez condemned Mr Musk after he suspended the accounts of half a dozen journalists who routinely reported on him and the social media platform.
“I get feeling unsafe, but descending into abuse of power + erratically banning journalists only increases the intensity around you,” the Democratic lawmaker said.
“As someone who has been subject to real and dangerous plots, I do get it. I didn’t have security and have experienced many scary incidents,” she said.
“In fact, many of the right-wing outlets you now elevate published photos of my home, car, etc. At a certain point you gotta disconnect. Maybe try putting down your phone,” she suggested.
“You first lol,” responded Mr Musk.
