Democratic mega-donor Tom Steyer on Saturday urged House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to stop referring to savings from the GOP tax plan as “crumbs.”
“Nancy was making a point that was true, but she said it in a way that disparaged the amount of money that they were getting,” Steyer said during an appearance at the California Democratic Party convention.
The now infamous line by Pelosi – that the bonuses given to American workers because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are “crumbs” – has since been used in several Republican fundraising ads to cast the Democratic Party as out of touch with middle-class Americans.
More than two dozen U.S. companies have raised their wages, announced domestic investments, or offered bonuses of $1,000 or more to employees since President Trump signed a Republican tax bill last year that cut the corporate rate to 21 percent.
“I think she probably wouldn’t use that word again because they’re trying to use it against her,” Steyer said, adding that Pelosi’s political opponents will turn her crumbs gaffe around “to make it look like she’s insensitive.”
Steyer, who has become a leader within the so-called anti-Trump “Resistance,” simultaneously declined to say whether Democrats need a change in their leadership ranks.
Pelosi, D-Calif., has been involved in Democratic leadership for more than a decade, and has never hinted at stepping down from her post should her party fail to make substantial gains in the upcoming midterm elections.
“I’m sure Nancy will kill herself to win on Nov. 6,” Steyer said of the 77-year-old Democrat. “I have a ton of gratitude for what she’s done and the job she’s done.”
