BERLIN — Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is finding herself at the center of a digital firestorm following a high-profile geographic blunder during a foreign policy panel in Germany. While speaking at the Technical University of Berlin as part of the Munich Security Conference, the Congresswoman repeatedly stated that Venezuela is located “below the equator”—a claim that is factually incorrect.
The remarks came during a session where Ocasio-Cortez was weighing in on the dramatic events of January 3, 2026, known as Operation Absolute Resolve, in which U.S. Special Operations forces apprehended Nicolás Maduro to face narco-terrorism charges in New York.
“Not a Remark on Maduro as a Leader”
During the panel, Ocasio-Cortez attempted to frame the U.S. intervention as an overreach of power, regardless of the target’s character.
“We look at what happened in Venezuela, for example; it is not a remark on who Maduro was as a leader,” she stated. “He canceled elections, he was an anti-democratic leader—that doesn’t mean that we can kidnap a head of state.”
She doubled down on the geographic reasoning for her critique, adding, “We cannot engage in acts of war just because the nation is below the equator.”
In reality, Venezuela is located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere, with its southernmost border sitting just north of the equatorial line.
A Clash of Credibility on the World Stage
The slip-up was magnified by the Congresswoman’s earlier attempts to mock Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the event, she reportedly poked fun at Rubio for his assertion that Spanish settlers heavily influenced the “cowboy culture” currently found across the Americas—an assertion that historians generally agree is accurate.
The contrast between her critique of Rubio and her own geographic error provided immediate fuel for political opponents. According to Dan Turrentine of The Huddle, the backlash was so swift and severe that Ocasio-Cortez reportedly canceled her remaining media engagements in Germany, allegedly feeling unsupported by her usual political allies on the international stage.
Social Media Erupts: “The Foreign Policy Test”
The reaction on X (formerly Twitter) was unforgiving, with many users comparing the mistake to historical political gaffes that stalled past presidential ambitions.
- Marvel (@MarvelX): “AOC’s statement that Venezuela is ‘below the Equator’ is as disqualifying as a serious presidential candidate as Dan Quayle spelling potato with an ‘e’.”
- NYC_Cowsheep (@NYC_Cowsheep): “AOC shows up for her ‘Foreign Policy test’ and either didn’t or forgot to study. It showed how unprepared she was for Prime Time on the World Stage.”
- Brady Sneath (@SneathPolitics): Noted the contrast in “gravitas” between Rubio and the Congresswoman, lamenting what he called a failure of “Democratic elites to develop serious, legitimate candidates.”
As speculation regarding a 2028 presidential run continues to swirl around the New York representative, critics argue that these moments of “unpreparedness” could become significant hurdles if she seeks to move from the House of Representatives to the White House.