Things got a little uncomfortable for a GOP strategist during Wednesday’s broadcast of “The Lead” with Jake Tapper on CNN.
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Tapper was joined by Democratic strategist Adrienne Elrod and GOP strategist Shermichael Singleton during one segment, where the three discussed recent comments by some Republicans about affordability, the issue voters care about most as the midterm elections approach. When Tapper started playing clips of the Republicans’ comments, Singleton looked like he wanted to bury his head in the sand.
Tapper played part of Vice President JD Vance’s interview with Laura Ingraham on Fox News on Tuesday, in which he claimed Democrats are not working with Republicans to address affordability.
“What do you even say to that, Jake? Do they think that the American people are not paying attention?” Elrod fired back at the clip. “There was a bipartisan deal that Congress struck, and it went to the President’s desk, and he rejected it because he was mad that his voter law that’s going to disenfranchise voters across the country and make it harder for people to vote, he was mad that that didn’t pass.”
Singleton looked uncomfortable as Elrod noted it was rare to see a bipartisan deal such as the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act pass through Congress, which made Trump’s rejection all the more striking.
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Tapper then played a clip of an exchange Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX) had with a reporter on Capitol Hill about affordability.
Nehls claimed he was going to eat a couple of “rib eyes and lobster tails” for the Fourth of July celebration. The reporter asked how the “60% of Americans” who can’t afford those foods should think about his comments.
“Maybe 60% of Americans don’t work as hard as I do,” Nehls said tersely.
The clip left Tapper floored.
“Wow!” he exclaimed.
Singleton explained that Nehls’ comments were a symptom of a deeper issue within the GOP.
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“We can’t agree on much of anything,” he said.
