White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany claimed Monday on Fox News that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “won’t lay off the ice cream,” but is “fine” with people being laid off amid the coronavirus.
McEnany joined America’s Newsroom and said President Trump is ready for an economic “bounce back.” She added that Pelosi appeared satisfied in delaying the passage of additional funds to small businesses.
“The Paycheck Protection Program, which was just replenished, that funding starts again today so small business owners across the country will get a chance to get that money to pay their workers. It should’ve been here a week ago, but, unfortunately, Nancy Pelosi delayed this,” McEnany said.
The PPP was established as part of the $2.3 trillion CARES Act created to offset the economic consequences of COVID-19, but it ran dry of funds earlier in April. Trump signed a new $484 billion spending package on Friday that will provide additional funding.
“[Pelosi] was out on late-night television, she was out eating ice cream as literally people were being potentially laid off or worried about their paychecks; so Nancy Pelosi, she won’t lay off the ice cream, but she’s just fine with laying off America’s workers, and that’s a shame,” McEnany said.
McEnany was referring to Pelosi joining James Corden on his late-night show earlier in April and showing off how much ice cream was in her freezer in addition to wondering how Trump’s base could still support him after his response to the pandemic.
Fox News’s Ed Henry pushed back on McEnany’s Pelosi’s jab.
“OK. But, Kayleigh, you’re talking about Nancy Pelosi and the ice cream from a couple of weeks ago. Fair enough. You’re going to make your points. But these are serious times,” he said.
Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, claimed Democrats were to blame for the holdup on getting additional funds to small businesses.
“Name me one productive thing Speaker Pelosi has accomplished in this pandemic,” McCarthy said Monday on Fox & Friends last week. “When President Trump on Jan. 31 put in the ban from China, Feb. 24, she asked people to gather together in San Francisco. She actually fought the ban. When we wanted to put the CARES Act together, she came in, held it up. Now we had a small business program working. She’s now held up the money.”
Pelosi has pushed back on the claims, saying last week the Democrats’ efforts secured “about $120 billion more” for “small businesses … geared to our underbanked communities, women- and minority-owned businesses, Native American, rural America, veterans, small businesses, and the rest.”
