When she’s not flying back to Washington in the middle of a pandemic to squash a nearly-at-the-finish line bipartisan deal on coronavirus relief, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, is appearing on late night talk shows chatting about ice cream.
Pelosi recently appeared on the “Late Late Show with James Corden” to talk about her love of ice cream from her California home in front of at least two huge refrigerator-freezer combos.
At least one of the freezers was fully stocked with more than a dozen pints of ice cream and gelato, as well as chocolate-covered ice cream bars.
“I don’t know what I would have done if ice cream were not invented,” Pelosi said. “I just wonder.”You may be thinking, what’s the big deal? It was a short, less than 20-minute conversation.While true, it’s important to understand how much time goes into any sort of live media interview for a lawmaker, let alone the Speaker of the House. After spending valuable time in the long chain of approval, preparing talking points for topics to be covered, and setting up the camera, internet connection, etc., there goes several hours—if not days—down the drain. Plus, a poor staffer or two likely had to get within 6 feet to set up the scene and record the video, as well as fix her hair and makeup.
All of that was precious time that could have been spent trying to write legislation to help everyday Americans get out of the financial funk the coronavirus has created.
Pelosi tweeted the clip of the ice cream chat with the caption, “We all have found our ways to keep our spirits up during these trying times. Mine just happens to fill up my freezer.”
When she wasn’t talking about ice cream in the interview, she spent time demanding racial data on the coronavirus, and of course blaming President Donald Trump for denying the coronavirus and ignoring science.
Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, tweeted short video in response, saying, “I only have one refrigerator, and like half of it is a freezer, but I will give you all the ice cream I have in here, Madam Speaker, if you fund small business and stop holding it hostage.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee seized the fundraising opportunity, tweeting, “It’s time @SpeakerPelosi puts down her ice cream scoop, picks up her gavel, and gets back to work restocking the Paycheck Protection Program for our small businesses. #LetThemEatIceCream,” with a link to purchase t-shirts with a ridiculous painting of Pelosi eating ice cream.
The Paycheck Protection Program, which was established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, offers small businesses funds to pay up to two months of payroll and other costs of doing business.
As of press time, the Senate had passed legislation providing more funds for the program. The House will vote soon, and the president is expected to sign the legislation into law.
Editor’s note: Seymour Klierly writes Washington Whispers for the Journal from inside the Beltway.
