CNN reporter Elle Reeve got some pushback while interviewing a man at a recent MAGA Boat Parade who claimed his biggest concern is the economy after she questioned how someone who is hurting financially could own a boat.
Reeve was on the ground in Panama City, Florida at the time when she asked an attendee named Joe what his “most important issue” was in the upcoming election.
He replied:
“The economy. Getting interest rates down, getting it where we can afford to live in America. Right now, it’s too expensive.”
Reeve then asked the question of the hour:
“Okay now, let me maybe ask like a slightly impolite question, but you know, if you can afford a boat, you’re not hurting so bad, right? Because a boat costs a lot of money and it’s a lot of upkeep.”
Joe then got defensive:
“Listen, nobody gave me s**t! I earned everything that I’ve got. I’m retired military, retired power plant, and I am successful and retired with boats, jet skis because I got it right, and everybody has that chance. Whether they choose to or not, that’s up to them.”
Reeve responded:
“I would never try to take anything away from you in that way, but what I’m asking is... groceries are probably a smaller part of your budget than say, you know, someone who’s like a little worse off. I think it’s interesting that people who are a little bit more comfortable are still so concerned about the economy."
"Do you see what I’m saying?”
But Joe stood firm and suggested his money doesn't go as far as it used to:
“Because I want my money to go further. I want inflation to go down, I want interest rates to go back down. I want all that, but that covers everybody in the economy."
"Not just me, not just the poor, not just the rich. It covers everybody.”
You can watch what happened in the video below.
Many were critical of Joe and other attendees.
Chief among the issues MAGA fans complained about was immigration, and Reeve also spoke to a woman who claimed she's had to "call the police" due to illegal immigrants who've caused problems in apartment buildings she owns.
While "most people" conceded that Trump did not perform well during last week's presidential debate, they nonetheless defended his debunked claim that immigrants in Springfield, Ohio are eating their neighbors' pets.
One woman said that she doesn't believe Trump's claim at all but nonetheless said that the issues in Springfield and elsewhere are an indication of a larger issue: towns unable to "absorb" people from different places with different customs, implying that there might be some truth to the matter due to "demographic" changes.
When Reeve pointed out to one man that Springfield officials—including the mayor, the city manager, and the police department—have confirmed no cases of immigrants eating pets and even Googled the information for him, the man scoffed and accused the authorities of "passing the buck."
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