Ross clarifies shutdown comments: ‘Painfully aware’ that workers face hardship

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross acknowledged Thursday afternoon that federal workers are facing financial hardship during the partial government shutdown, hours after he expressed uncertainty about why some government employees are turning to food banks.

“There are people experiencing hardship,” Ross said on Bloomberg TV. “We had a lengthy session with a large portion of the workforce yesterday trying to make sure we understand what their problems are, and we’re trying to do our best to mitigate them.”

“We’re aware, painfully aware, that there are hardships inflicted on the individual workers,” he added. “All I was trying to do is make sure they’re aware there are possible other things that could help somewhat mitigate their problems.”

Wilbur Ross says the Trump administration is “painfully aware” of the hardships being caused by the shutdown ▶️https://t.co/zq6mPQr4pE pic.twitter.com/BTWQZ0t0d5

— Bloomberg TV (@BloombergTV) January 24, 2019

{mosads}Ross sparked a backlash Thursday morning when he said on CNBC that he didn’t “really quite understand why” a number of the 800,000 federal workers who are missing paychecks have gone to food banks in recent weeks.

“The 30 days of pay that some people will be out, there’s no real reason why they shouldn’t be able to get a loan against it, and we’ve seen a number of ads of financial institutions doing that,” said Ross, who is reportedly worth $700 million.

Hundreds of banks and credit unions have offered low- or zero-interest loans against back pay to federal workers who will not be paid until after the shutdown ends. Furloughed contractors, however, may not receive any back pay.

The shutdown, which began Dec. 22, is the longest in U.S. history.

Asked in the Bloomberg TV interview whether it was practical for government employees to take out a loan during the shutdown, Ross said his earlier comments were meant to “make sure that workers who are experiencing liquidity crises know that may be a source that they could go to.”

Democrats seized on Ross’s earlier comments, painting Trump administration officials as out of touch with workers who are struggling. GOP Sen. Mike Rounds (S.D.) said taking out a loan may not be “palatable” to a large number of government workers.

Roughly 25 percent of the federal government has been shuttered for 34 days.

The Senate on Thursday afternoon rejected two measures to reopen the government, raising the prospect that the shutdown could stretch into February.

If the shutdown continues into next week, federal workers will miss a second consecutive paycheck.