House Speaker Paul Ryan has been accused of being “out of touch” with ordinary Americans after cheering a $1.50 per week increase to the weekly wage of a Pennsylvania school secretary.
The Republican congressional leader was hailing the effect of his party’s $1.5 trillion tax cut on Twitter when he made the gaffe. “A secretary at a public high school in Lancaster, PA, said she was pleasantly surprised her pay went up $1.50 a week… she said [that] will more than cover her Costco membership for the year,” the tweet read.
The tweet, which was deleted but stored on an online public database of politicians’ deleted tweets, has been met with howls of outrage online.
His political opponents were also quick to criticize the post, with Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi calling the tweet “embarrassing.” Writing on Twitter, Pelosi also cited Ryan’s receipt of a $500,000 donation from the Republican benefactors the Koch Brothers following the passing of the tax bill in November.
Ryan’s Republican primary challenger ahead of the upcoming midterm elections, Paul Nehlen, said his opponent lacked real world experience because his only other job before his political career was as a hot dog salesman.
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