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GOP Hypocrisy

Don Jr. Suggests Members of Congress Should Work Minimum Wage Jobs Like He Did

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Remember the old saying that even a broken clock is right twice a day? Well, it turns out that Donald Trump Jr. actually said something that makes sense. I didn’t think this was possible but he just proved me wrong. He was talking to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on his new program Triggered, where he reminisced about working on minimum wage jobs and for tips, Newsweek reports. He came out with a suggestion that McCarthy appeared to agree with — that perhaps members of Congress could learn something about “hustle” culture by having this kind of work experience.

“They’ve never actually had that hustle,” Trump Jr. told McCarthy on the Thursday episode of his Triggered podcast. “I understand where I come from and my background — I get it. But my father made sure I worked minimum wage jobs…I also worked for tips, which is something that’s really important that everybody should understand.”

He’s made a good point here. I’m sure most members of Congress come from monied backgrounds. But having said that, I’m pretty sure his father might have helped him out if he got into a pickle. Most minimum wage earners don’t have that privilege.

And Don Jr. clearly doesn’t have to worry about where his next meal is coming from. Celebrity Net Worth estimates that Donald Trump’s eldest son has a net worth of $350 million. Most of that comes from his salary as executive vice president of the Trump Organization.

Don Jr. has frequently talked about his days as a bartender in the years after he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Finance, telling several outlets that he moved to Aspen and lived out of the back of a truck, defying his parents. According to Politico Magazine, he spent his summers in high school working as a dock attendant in Atlantic City and at a construction site for his dad’s company.

“I had a great time, but your brain starts to atrophy,” he said in a 2003 interview with New York Magazine. After his time in Colorado he came back to New York and joined the family business.

On his program Thursday, Don Jr. said “so much” of the experience he gained while working in minimum wage jobs is “lacking” in many resumes on Capitol Hill.

“No one’s ever had to make payroll,” he said. “No one’s signed the front of a check, as opposed to the back. You always come to expect that not to exist in these offices.”

But several members of Congress have talked about their experiences working in minimum wage jobs, especially in the service industry. I’d guess Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is the most notable example. She waited tables and tended the bar at a New York City taqueria before running for congress in 2017. The sad thing here is that critics continue to disparage her for working in the service sector.

Folks on social media sharply criticized Trump Jr.’s remarks, noting his affluent background and family connections.

“Working pretend jobs given to you by your daddy isn’t the same thing as working and struggling to get by,” Patriot Takes noted on Twitter Friday. The account is dedicated to fighting “right-wing threats.”

“Wait. I thought former President Trump is his father,” Jeff Timmer, a GOP strategist and senior adviser for the Lincoln Project  tweeted.

There were many other hilarious tweets:

Megan Hamilton
meet the author

Megan has lived in California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida and she currently lives in Central America. Living in these places has informed her writing on politics, science, and history. She is currently owned by 15 cats and 3 dogs and regularly owns Trump supporters when she has the opportunity. She can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GaiaLibra and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/politicalsaurus

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