Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said she would "beg" Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., to debate her, and would be "very polite" if passing her in the halls of the Capitol.
Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate, now is running for Congress.
"I would be very polite [passing her in the halls of Congress]," Palin said in a televised interview. "And I would beg her to debate me, 'Please AOC,' on education, on capitalism, on how to run a business, on our nation’s security, on what it takes to be energy independent again in order to be solvent and sovereign. Oh, gosh, I want to debate her."
Palin, who served three years as governor of Alaska, resigned in 2008 after Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., asked her to run as his vice-presidential candidate against then-President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
After more than a decade out of the public eye, Palin announced April 1 that she was running for Congress to fill the vacant seat of the late Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, who died March 18.
"America is at a tipping point. As I've watched the far left destroy the country, I knew I had to step up and join the fight," Palin said in a statement on Twitter. "The people of the great State of Alaska, like other all over the country, are struggling with out-of-control inflation, empty shelves, and gas prices that are among the highest in the world.
"We need energy security for this country, and Alaska can help provide that — but only if the federal government gets out of the way and lets the free market do what it does best."
After endorsing former President Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential race, Trump returned the favor and endorsed her congressional bid, Business Insider reported Sunday.
"Wonderful patriot Sarah Palin of Alaska just announced that she is running for Congress, and that means there will be a true America First fighter on the ballot to replace the late and legendary Congressman Don Young," Trump said in a statement.
Even if Palin wins the seat, it's unlikely AOC would debate her.
The firebrand progressive member of the squad has refused such offers before, even a 2018 offer of $10,000 from Daily Wire conservative Ben Shapiro, who AOC accused of harassing her, saying in a Twitter post at the time, "I don’t owe a response to unsolicited requests from men with bad intentions. And also, like catcalling, for some reason they feel entitled to one."
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