The image of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) and Sen. Bernie Sanders stepping off a Bombardier Challenger 604 private jet, as reported by the New York Post on April 23, 2025, encapsulates a glaring contradiction in the behaviour of some Leftist elites. These self-proclaimed champions of the working class and environmental justice, who decry wealth inequality and climate change, were caught indulging in the very luxuries they condemn, chartering a $15,000-per-hour jet for their "Fighting Oligarchy" tour. This incident serves as a springboard to examine the broader pattern of double standards among Leftist elites, who often espouse populist and eco-conscious rhetoric while living lifestyles that mirror the elite they criticise. Their actions reveal a disconnect between their public personas and private choices, undermining their credibility and exposing a hypocrisy that fuels public distrust.
AOC and Sanders' "Fighting Oligarchy" tour, designed to rally against billionaires and corporate power, has drawn massive crowds—36,000 in Los Angeles, 34,000 in Denver—energising progressives with fiery speeches about economic justice. Yet, their decision to travel between stops like Tucson, Salt Lake City, and Bakersfield on a private jet costing up to $221,000 in the first quarter of 2025 alone contradicts their message. The tour's website, soliciting donations for "modest" travel expenses and proclaiming it's "not paid for by billionaires," adds irony when juxtaposed with the jet's $5–7 million price tag and 365 gallons of fuel burned per 1.32 hours, far exceeding the average jet's 239 gallons per hour. This sentiment reflects a broader frustration: Leftist elites often demand sacrifices from the public—higher taxes, reduced carbon footprints—while exempting themselves from the same standards.
This pattern extends beyond AOC and Sanders. Leftist elites frequently advocate policies that burden the working class while enjoying privileges that insulate them from the consequences. For instance, AOC's Green New Deal, co-sponsored with Sanders, calls for slashing carbon emissions through measures like phasing out fossil fuels, which could raise energy costs for ordinary Americans. Yet, their private jet, emitting 500 times more carbon annually than the average person, undercuts their eco-warrior stance. Similarly, figures like John Kerry, former climate envoy, faced criticism for using private jets while preaching climate action, with a 2021 report noting his family's jet emitted 116 metric tons of carbon in a year—30 times the average household's footprint. This mirrors the American Thinker critique of judicial elites imposing policies without accountability, as Leftist leaders push restrictive regulations while evading personal compliance.
The double standard also manifests in economic rhetoric. AOC rails against corporate welfare, citing Walmart's reliance on public assistance due to low wages, yet her $174,000 congressional salary and Sanders' multimillion-dollar net worth place them among the elite they denounce. Their wealth, while modest compared to billionaires, affords luxuries—like first-class flights (AOC's $1,100 JetBlue seat) or private jets—that clash with their calls for redistribution. This echoes the World Socialist Web Site's charge that their tour promotes a "dead-end" strategy of supporting a Democratic Party beholden to corporate interests, revealing a performative radicalism that doesn't challenge the system they benefit from.
The hypocrisy erodes trust, as seen in public reactions. This resonates with the Arcadian Magazine concept of "liquid ferality," where elite actions destabilise social cohesion by contradicting shared values. When AOC and Sanders preach solidarity but fly in "luxe leather seats," as the NRCC's Ben Petersen quips, they alienate the working-class voters they claim to represent. This mirrors Dr. Reiner Füllmich's case, where state elites suppressed dissent under the guise of public Basement dwellers who have never worked a real job in their lives are not qualified to lecture others about hypocrisy. They are the epitome of it, living off the system they claim to oppose.
Defenders might argue that private jets are logistical necessities for high-profile figures facing tight schedules or security concerns, as AOC's team claimed after her JetBlue controversy. They could also point to the tour's impact—mobilising 200,000 attendees to pressure Republican districts—outweighing personal travel choices. However, these justifications falter when their rhetoric explicitly vilifies such luxuries. Sanders' 2020 campaign condemned private jets as "symbols of excess," and AOC's Green New Deal targets aviation emissions, making their actions a direct betrayal of principle. Commercial flights, even first-class, would align better with their message, as would transparent acknowledgment of their carbon footprint.
In sum, the double standards of Leftist elites like AOC and Sanders—preaching equality and environmentalism while indulging in elite privileges—reflect a systemic hypocrisy. They demand systemic change but live comfortably within the system, from private jets to high salaries, mirroring the oligarchs they critique. This behaviour, amplified by cases like Kerry's or the American Thinker's judicial elites, fuels cynicism, as seen on X, where usersscoff at their "climate change hysteria" amid Coachella-style rallies.
"For socialists, they're sure a couple of high flyers!
Far-left New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was spotted exiting a private jet with her comrade in arms, Sen. Bernie Sanders, after shuttling between stops for a campaign dedicated to denouncing the wealthy.
Video from Fox News shows AOC and Sanders exiting a Bombardier Challenger 604 — despite both railing against flying private planes and the people who own them — a luxury aircraft with a lofty $5 million to $7 million price tag and costing an eye-watering $15,000 per hour to charter.
The duo hopped the swanky ride to attend a series of Sanders' "Fighting Oligarchy" rallies, which aim to "have real discussions across America," and take on "the oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power and influence in this country," the official website for the campaign states.
The site even solicits donations to help fund the tour, which it says — in an understatement that strains credulity — requires "a modest amount of resources" for travel-related expenses.
The website even takes a shot at the uber-rich, disclosing it's "Paid for by friends of Bernie Sanders (not the billionaires)."
The tour has taken the duo to locales including Tucson, Arizona; Los Angeles; Salt Lake City; Nampa, Idaho; Bakersfield, California, and more, to pontificate about the evils of extreme wealth and income inequality to cheering crowds.
"We as a community must choose and vote for Democrats and elected officials who know how to stand for the working class," AOC said at one rally.
The tour must be going well, as flying in the lap of luxury in a private jet is actually a significant upgrade from how AOC traveled to previous rallies.
Last month, the congresswoman was photographed flying first-class on a JetBlue flight to a Fighting Oligarchy event from JFK Airport in Queens to Las Vegas, which critics slammed as the lefty congresswoman battling inequality one "mimosa at a time."
A first-class JetBlue seat on the same route, weekday and time later this month costs upward of $1,100.
Sanders has also previously drawn criticism for his penchant for private jet travel, chartering at least one for the duration of President Trump's impeachment trial in 2020.
His campaign spent more than $221,000 on private jet travel in the first quarter of 2025 alone, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
The cherry on top of the hypocrisy sundae for Sanders and AOC — both avowed eco-warriors — is the significant environmental impact of private jet travel.
According to the International Energy Agency, 51% of private jets burn around 239 gallons of fuel per hour — meaning they spew more carbon emissions into the atmosphere in 121 minutes than the average person does in an entire year.
The Bombardier Challenger used by the pair of self-proclaimed climate defenders guzzles a whopping 365 gallons of fuel every 1.32 hours, according to Nature journal Communications Earth & Environment, placing their fly ride well above average.
The study said those who regularly travel by private jet produce nearly 500 times more carbon each year than the average person worldwide.