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Amazon publicly roasts Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez after she blasts Jeff Bezos' wealth, Amazon wages
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Amazon publicly roasts Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez after she blasts Jeff Bezos' wealth, Amazon wages

Pulled no punches

Amazon roasted Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) on Monday after the freshman lawmaker remarked on Jeff Bezos' wealth and Amazon's "starvation wages."

What are the details?

Ocasio-Cortez previously said that Bezos, the billionaire Amazon CEO, was able to amass such a fortune by underpaying the company's workers. The congresswoman has been very outspoken about Amazon and its business practices in the past, and was partially blamed for Amazon's decision in February to nix a New York City-based headquarters.

During an interview on ABC News' "This Week," Ocasio-Cortez said, "If [Bezos] being a billionaire is predicated on paying people starvation wages and stripping them of their ability to access health care ... and on the fact that his workers take food stamps, so I'm paying for him to be a billionaire, I think that's certainly part of the equation."

"When you have a very large workforce and you underpay every single person and then you also participate in taking billions of dollars of government subsidies, that could be part of it," she added.

In a tweet, Amazon News tagged Ocasio-Cortez and wrote, "@AOC is just wrong. Amazon is a leader on pay at $15 min wage + full benefits from day one. We also lobby to raise federal min wage."

The newly minted congresswoman also said that billionaires — including Bezos — should pay more in taxes, and also floated other suggestions like declining government subsidies, guaranteeing health care to all employees, and sending people to college for free.

What else?

An Amazon spokesperson also blasted Ocasio-Cortez's allegations in a statement.

"These allegations are absurd," the statement, provided to Fox Business, said. "Amazon associates receive industry-leading pay starting at $15 an hour — in fact, hourly associates at our Staten Island facility earn between $17.30 and $23 an hour, plus benefits which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance. On top of these benefits, Amazon pre-pays 95% of continuing education tuition costs through its Career Choice program for associates who want to pursue in-demand careers. For anyone who wants to know what it's like to work in an Amazon fulfillment center, sign up for a tour today."

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