‘Stephanie Antoinette’: MSNBC host sparks backlash after claiming Americans profited from pandemic

‘Your winner for the most tone-deaf, elitist comment of the month has emerged’

MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle sparked a backlash after claiming that Americans can afford to deal with inflation and noted that savings increased during the pandemic, in comments some conservatives have called tone-deaf.

She said that Americans need to put the rise of inflation and increased prices of everyday items such as fuel and gas “in perspective” while appearing on NBC’sSunday Today.

The Department of Labour has said that the consumer price index rose 6.2 per cent year-over-year in October – the biggest annual gain since November 1990. Month-over-month, prices jumped 0.9 per cent.

Ms Ruhle told host Willie Geist that the increase in prices was to be expected following a pandemic and that most Americans would be able to afford it.

“The dirty little secret here, Willie, while nobody likes to pay more, on average, we have the money to do so,” she said. “Household savings hit a record high over the pandemic, we didn’t really have anywhere to go out and spend.”

She also noted that retail sales are expected to set new records this year, that home values have increased and that the stock market is seeing new highs.

Ms Ruhle was slammed by Twitter users for her comments, with one person calling her “Stephanie Antoinette” in reference to Marie Antoinette, the queen of France during the French Revolution.

“Now we know where the White House gets their news and it explains so much,” conservative pundit Erick Erickson tweeted. “This is the sort of stuff that will cause the Democrats to really lose and I’m okay with that.”

“Your winner for the most tone-deaf, elitist comment of the month has emerged,” another Twitter user said.

The Director of Public Affairs for the Minnesota House Republicans, Andrew Wagner, wrote that “‘You can afford it just fine’ is next level out of touch stuff”.

Ms Ruhle also faced accusations that she was out of touch with the American people when she said in September that “If you do not want to get vaccinated, you can work from home”.

“You can home-school your children. You can shop online,” she added.

Inflation has been reported as one of the top reasons behind West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin’s hesitation to pass President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan.

But Mr Biden has argued the bill would help reduce inflation.

“It is important that Congress pass my Build Back Better plan, which is fully paid for and does not add to the debt and will get more Americans working by reducing the cost of child care and elder care, and help directly lower costs for American families by providing more affordable health coverage and prescription drugs – alongside cutting taxes for 50 million Americans, including for most families with children,” he said.

“Inflation hurts Americans pocketbooks, and reversing this trend is a top priority for me,” he added in his 10 November statement.

The Independent has reached out to NBC and Ms Ruhle for comment.

Nicholas Fondacaro, of the Media Research Centre watchdog, tweeted: “According to Ruhle, people should stop complaining about paying more for food because the price of their homes has increased. So, should they sell their home or take out a loan on it to buy food?”

“One of her other arguments is that a majority of households have investments in the stock market. But much of that is intended for retirement. So, is Ruhle’s advice for them to tap their 401Ks early to survive the winter?” he added. “She also pointed to savings going up during the pandemic. What about the people who lost their jobs because of the lockdowns? What income did they have coming in to save?”

“The goal of saving is not to be able to pay more for everything,” another Twitter user wrote. “It is to generate a sense of safety and security for your family.”