AOC shoots down Nikki Haley in fiesty Covid relief exchange: ‘I know you’re confused about actual governance’

Nikki Haley and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, both widely touted as future presidential candidates, have clashed on Twitter over coronavirus relief funding after the latter said the government needed to pay Americans to stay home to get the virus under control.

Seemingly heeding Joe Biden's plea for unity as the nation heals post-2020 election, the two came together on Twitter for a nuanced discussion of economic stimulus.

Ms Haley, the former US ambassador to the United Nations, engaged her diplomatic experience to try to clarify Ms Ocasio-Cortez's policy position on payments for stay-at-home-people.

"AOC, Are you suggesting you want to pay people to stay home from the money you take by defunding the police? Or was that for the student debts you wanted to pay off, the Green New Deal or Medicare for All? #WhereIsTheMoney."

Ms Ocasio-Cortez, saying she picked up on the former South Carolina governor's confusion over governance, explained her understanding of police budgets.

"Nikki, I’m suggesting Republicans find the spine to stand up to their corporate donors & vote for the same measures they did in March, except without the Wall St bailout this time," she said.

"Utterly embarrassing that this woman was a governor & still doesn’t have a grasp on public investment. Wonder if she says federal financing works like a piggy bank or household too?"

Ms Haley is near the top of the betting odds for a 2024 presidential bid, but with Donald Trump eligible to try again in four years she may have to wait until 2028.

By then, Ms Ocasio-Cortez will be old enough for a presidential bid of her own, so this preview could be the start of a long and fruitful friendship.