Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) strategically danced around questioning on her political future during an event at the Munich Security Conference on Friday.
At a panel focused on responding to the rise of populism, New York Times journalist Katrin Bennhold bluntly asked the New York congresswoman: “So when you run for president, are you going to impose a wealth tax or a billionaire’s tax?”
Ocasio-Cortez did not directly answer whether she would run for president in 2028: “We don’t have to wait for any one president to impose a wealth tax. I think that it needs to be done expeditiously.”
The progressive lawmaker is among the handful of potential Democratic 2028 presidential contenders who traveled to Germany for the conference.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) are also in attendance.
Ocasio-Cortez was asked during the question-and-answer portion of the panel why it was important to attend the conference and who paid for her travel. Ocasio-Cortez said her office paid for the flight.
“I think one of the reasons why, not just myself, but many of our colleagues here, in fact, Democrats, many Democrats that are here as well, is because we want to tell a larger story, that what is happening is indeed very grave, and we are in a new era,” Ocasio-Cortez said about the influx of Democrats in Munich.
