Trump tried to clean up Wilbur Ross' tone-deaf comments on unpaid federal workers, didn't succeed

Trump talks grocery stores and federal employees
(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/CNN)

On Thursday, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross weighed in on the 800,000 federal workers who haven't been paid in over a month, and his comments were not widely viewed as emanating empathy. That's true even if you don't picture Ross as fictional fellow billionaire Mr. Burns from The Simpsons:

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.