Billionaire Trump cabinet member Ross doesn’t have any idea what the unpaid federal workers are going through. Neither does Trump’s daughter-in-law or Kudlow. Many people live paycheck to paycheck.
Trump has referred to the shutdown as a "strike." He has complained that furloughed workers could hurt his economic numbers. He he groused that many are Democrats and part of the "deep state." And he has made comments seen by many as out-of-touch. https://t.co/jY5UZyr9o6
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) January 25, 2019
So a few things:
1) This isn’t remotely what Wilbur Ross was saying;
2) The world Trump describes sounds surreal; and
3) It’s amazing that Trump is this bad at offering advice at the one thing he is an expert on: indebtedness. https://t.co/sf5O2KnDj7— Daniel W. Drezner (@dandrezner) January 24, 2019
What Wilbur Ross and the Trump team’s tone-deaf shutdown comments really say https://t.co/S8am6D3O8z
— Post Politics (@postpolitics) January 24, 2019
Yesterday, Trump’s wealthy daughter-in-law Lara Trump said the #TrumpShutdown was just a “little bit of pain” for 800,000 federal workers. Today Trump’s wealthy Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says he doesn’t understand why unpaid federal workers would go to a food bank for help. pic.twitter.com/CvGRbvef7O
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) January 24, 2019
Today in billionaire cabinet secretaries https://t.co/a3AeYh1bmv
— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) January 24, 2019
It's called "hunger" Wilbur. https://t.co/e2DyaCt3Vg
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 24, 2019
Thoughts on unpaid federal workers:
"In some sense they're better off."
– Kevin Hassett"It is a little bit of pain but it's going to be for the future of our country."
– Lara Trump"There’s no real reason why they shouldn’t be able to get a loan."
– Wilbur Ross— Binyamin Appelbaum (@BCAppelbaum) January 24, 2019
Hey Wilbur Ross: Let me explain this to you:
1. @realDonaldTrump shut down the government;
2. That means many federal workers, such as FBI agents & Coast Guard personnel, are working without pay;
3. Food is not free.Get it @SecretaryRoss? https://t.co/SkqEJ8741o
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) January 24, 2019
If you live paycheck to paycheck, ‘eventually’ can be devastating. https://t.co/8bwgIWVIUf
— Juana Summers Markland (@jmsummers) January 24, 2019
Wilbur Ross is @realDonaldTrump’s Secretary of Commerce.
Wilbur Ross is a billionaire.
And this is billionaire Wilbur Ross saying he doesn’t understand why federal workers not getting paid during the #TrumpShutdown don’t just take out loans *to feed their families*.
Unreal. pic.twitter.com/YHHZqKa8sx
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 24, 2019
Sen. Schumer calls Wilbur Ross comments "appalling" and "the 21st century equivalent of 'let them eat cake.'"
"Secretary Ross, they just can't call their stock broker and ask them to sell some of their shares." https://t.co/5OkzsDv0CV pic.twitter.com/zT3ErjyBiN
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 24, 2019
54% of people say they could only miss 2 paychecks before they wouldn't be able to pay their bills, per a Fox News poll.
Federal workers are about to miss their 2nd paycheck. pic.twitter.com/6vRKXSatBI
— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) January 24, 2019
Because they need food? Because they are not getting paid? And many live paycheck to paycheck? https://t.co/5jF0uNgoFA
— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) January 24, 2019
Paul Krugman points out that the US has started a trade war over fewer employees than the number affected by the shutdown.
Wilbur Ross, who has been leading us into a trade war on behalf of the steel industry, says that the number of workers affected by the shutdown is small, so it's no big deal. A useful chart pic.twitter.com/5sWkjtwug8
— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) January 24, 2019
Actually primary metals is just 0.3% of GDP, and a lot of that is stuff that uses the output from steel mills. The industry being protected is much smaller. https://t.co/FZ4OjlvmqU
— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) January 24, 2019
After telling the press that federal workers are "volunteering" by continuing to come to work without pay, a reporter calls out Larry Kudlow's incorrect assessment and he fumbles further, saying they are working without pay out of respect for the presidency and Trump. pic.twitter.com/ofN3unRVSY
— Amee Vanderpool (@girlsreallyrule) January 24, 2019
Open this tweet to get the thread of reactions from federal employees:
Feds working unpaid: I will anonymously tweet out any reactions I get to Kudlow's assessment. DMs are open. https://t.co/aOJiAGEvgW
— Dara Lind (@DLind) January 24, 2019
Sad! 