On Wednesday’s broadcast of ABC’s The View, co-host Joy Behar defended Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) after critics mocked the congresswoman’s answer to a foreign policy question at a summit in Munich, Germany.
The panel discussed Ocasio-Cortez’s appearance on the international stage, where she was asked whether the United States would commit troops to defend Taiwan in the event of a conflict. Her response emphasized longstanding U.S. policy and the importance of avoiding confrontation through economic and diplomatic measures.
“You know, I think that this is such a, you know, I think that this is, of course, a very long-standing policy of the United States,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “And I think what we are hoping for is that we want to make sure that we never get to that point, 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.”
Some commentators characterized the answer as hesitant or uncertain. Co-host Whoopi Goldberg introduced the segment by noting that critics on the right were highlighting what they described as a shaky start for Ocasio-Cortez at the summit.
Behar pushed back strongly on that criticism.
After the show aired clips of President Donald Trump speaking at various events, Behar argued that Ocasio-Cortez’s response, even if imperfect, compared favorably to remarks made by Trump over the years.
“My mother used to say, don’t spit up in the air, it comes back in your face,” Behar said. “Okay, so check him out before you start attacking. You said it sounded a little ‘homina, homina, homina,’ but compared to him, it’s like Mensa.”
Behar also referenced past moments in which Trump appeared to confuse geographic locations, adding that he “didn’t even know the difference between Iceland and Greenland.”
The exchange highlights ongoing partisan divisions over foreign policy messaging, particularly when it comes to Taiwan, a longstanding flashpoint in U.S.-China relations. While the United States maintains a policy of “strategic ambiguity” regarding direct military intervention, both Democrats and Republicans have faced scrutiny for how they articulate that position on the world stage.
The debate over Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks underscores how political rhetoric — especially on international issues — is quickly amplified and dissected in a highly polarized media environment.
