--- title: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Compares Billionaires to Michael Scott description: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweets at a Times Square billboard denouncing her criticism of Amazon's plan to open a New York headquarters. canonical: https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-02-21T20:23:19.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:23:11.703Z og:title: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Trolls a Billboard With Pop Culture og:description: The congresswoman has hit back at an attack billboard og:url: https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3bc6948b2acb9473/6989459497cdff70656b75ff/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-michael-scott.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Alexandria-Ocasio-Cortez-Michael-Scott og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Trolls a Billboard With Pop Culture twitter:description: The congresswoman has hit back at an attack billboard twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3bc6948b2acb9473/6989459497cdff70656b75ff/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-michael-scott.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Invoked Pop Culture to Hit Back at a Critical Billboard > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=6ceafb2d-e7c0-451f-b33d-ad555310bd0f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Twice a week | time.com/newsletters, September 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=6ceafb2d-e7c0-451f-b33d-ad555310bd0f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=6ceafb2d-e7c0-451f-b33d-ad555310bd0f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=6ceafb2d-e7c0-451f-b33d-ad555310bd0f&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Amazon Officially Cancels Plan for New York Headquarters [Watch (HLS stream): Amazon Officially Cancels Plan for New York Headquarters](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/cF5CGSvR.m3u8) (1:13)  _Published 2019-02-08. Amazon abruptly abandoned plans for a big new headquarters in New York that would have brought 25,000 jobs to the city, reversing course after politicians and others objected to the nearly $3 billion in tax incentives promised to the company._  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Feb 21, 2019 8:23 PM UTC Amazon abruptly abandoned plans for a big new headquarters in New York that would have brought 25,000 jobs to the city, reversing course after politicians and others objected to the nearly $3 billion in tax incentives promised to the company.  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Feb 21, 2019 8:23 PM UTC [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez](http://time.com/5520296/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-state-of-the-union/) has hit back at a New York City billboard denouncing her [criticism of Amazon’s now-cancelled plan](http://time.com/5530386/aoc-amazon-new-york-hq2/) to open a [new headquarters](http://time.com/5529733/amazon-new-york-headquarters-hq2-cancelled/) in Queens. After a conservative group called the Job Creators Network put up a digital ad in Times Square attacking Ocasio-Cortez for allegedly contributing to the loss of NYC jobs and wages, the 29-year-old congresswoman took to Twitter to call out the “billionaire-funded” organization. “Few things effectively communicate the power we’ve built in fighting dark money & anti-worker policies like billionaire-funded groups blowing tons of cash on wack billboards (this one is funded by the Mercers),” she tweeted, referencing conservative mega-donors Robert and [Rebekah Mercer](http://time.com/collection/2017-time-100/4742759/rebekah-mercer/), who have close ties to the Trump administration. “P.S. \[The\] fact that it’s in Times Sq\[uare\] tells you this isn’t for/by \[New Yorkers\]. > [](https://twitter.com/AOC/status/1098456697214062592) Ocasio-Cortez then doubled down by invoking a scene from _The Office_ in her takedown of the billboard. “Billionaires paying to put up anti-progressive propaganda in Times Square is like the obscenely rich version of the scene where Michael Scott points to the Bubba Gump and saying ‘This is it, this is the heart of civilization, right here,'” she wrote. > [](https://twitter.com/AOC/status/1098463983256944641) ## Transcript [00:51] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/"},"headline":"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Invoked Pop Culture to Hit Back at a Critical Billboard","datePublished":"2019-02-21T20:23:19.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-13T08:23:11.703Z","description":"The congresswoman has hit back at an attack billboard","url":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/","keywords":["Newsfeed","politics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3bc6948b2acb9473/6989459497cdff70656b75ff/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-michael-scott.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan McCluskey","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3bc6948b2acb9473/6989459497cdff70656b75ff/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-michael-scott.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Alexandria-Ocasio-Cortez-Michael-Scott","caption":"U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks during a news conference at the East Front of the U.S. Capitol February 7, 2019 in Washington, DC.","creditText":"Alex Wong/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/","name":"Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Invoked Pop Culture to Hit Back at a Critical Billboard"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Amazon Officially Cancels Plan for New York Headquarters","description":"Amazon abruptly abandoned plans for a big new headquarters in New York that would have brought 25,000 jobs to the city, reversing course after politicians and others objected to the nearly $3 billion in tax incentives promised to the company.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/cF5CGSvR/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2019-02-08T20:02:04.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/cF5CGSvR.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/","duration":"PT1M13S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5534842/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-billionaires-michael-scott/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```