Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

GOP Sen. Dragged For Claiming He Doesn't Remember Toilet Paper Shortages Under Trump

GOP Sen. Dragged For Claiming He Doesn't Remember Toilet Paper Shortages Under Trump
Andrew Harnik/Pool/Getty Images

Senator Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, was harshly criticized after he claimed to have no recollection of supply chain shortages during former President Donald Trump's time in office.

Cotton made the claim during an appearance on Fox News personality Laura Ingraham's show, suggesting supply chain shortages only happened after the balance of power shifted to the Democrats.


You can hear what he said in the video below.

Cotton said:

“We’ve had this pandemic for two years, Laura. I don’t remember inflation or supply chain shortages or labor shortages that we’ve seen this year in the first year of the pandemic."
"What changed? Joe Biden and the Democrats took power in January.”

Cotton's claim is false.

There were several weeks at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020 when millions of people couldn't find a single roll of toilet paper anywhere, the result at least in part of panic buying as state and local governments issued stay-at-home orders.

Other items—such as hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol, masks, cleaning supplies—were also in short supply, flying off the shelves almost as soon as they were stocked.

The Washington Post even published an article in April 2020 that attempted to trace the origins of the toilet paper shortage in particular, observing that "toilet paper—or rather, the lack of it—turns out to reveal a great deal about who we are and how we behave in a crisis."

Republicans meanwhile have attempted to place the blame for shortages on President Joe Biden and his administration amid a global supply-chain crisis, the result of COVID-19 disruptions paired with a boom in demand.

Cotton's remarks did not go over well with the online community, some of whom posted pictures to remind the Senator there had indeed been supply chain shortages before Democrats regained control of two branches of government—legislative and executive.









Cotton's remarks bring to mind recent remarks from Ohio Republican Representative Jim Jordan, who received heavy criticism in October after he claimed groceries "weren't expensive during the Trump administration."

Jordan's claim came as many continue to feel the economic fallout from the pandemic and as the impacts of inflation continue to be felt at the grocery store.

However, rising grocery prices are not necessarily new and were, in fact observed during former President Trump's time in office.

Trump generated significant controversy in 2018 after he initiated a trade war, raising taxes on aluminum and steel. Ultimately, the agriculture industry and farmers in particular ended up paying the price when countries leveled retaliatory tariffs.

The ripple effects of these tariffs have been felt across numerous sections of the food industry, including beef, beer, cheese, pork, soybeans, and even whiskey and bourbon.

More from People/donald-trump

Madonna; Elton John
Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Live Nation/GettyImages, Noam Galai/Getty Images for TIME

Madonna Reveals She And Elton John Finally 'Buried The Hatchet' After Decades-Long Feud

Harmony was finally restored when music icons Madonna and Elton John ended their decades-long feud over the weekend.

"We Finally Buried the Hatchet!!!" Madonna enthused on Tuesday's Instagram post.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk; Amy Coney Barrett
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images; Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Musk Slammed For Criticizing 'Suicidal Empathy' Of SCOTUS Justices Who Ruled In Favor Of Due Process

Once again borrowing from the language of the toxic, insecure, red pill/blue pill, alpha male, incel subcultures that gave rise to public figures like Andrew Tate and Nick Fuentes, Elon Musk attacked the women of the United States Supreme Court for following the rule of law and the United States Constitution instead of showing fealty to Republican President Donald Trump.

In a 4-5 dissent, only the women of SCOTUS decided the core of our justice system—due process—can stop the kinds of mistakes Trump's Department of Homeland Security is making routinely, like ICE abducting and deporting innocent people with visa or green cards to a hellish prison in El Salvador.

Keep ReadingShow less
Michelle Williams
Paras Griffin/Getty Images

Michelle Williams Puts First Class Passenger On Blast For Gross Bare Feet On Her Flight

Michelle Williams found herself in an all-too-relatable mid-flight nightmare—and she had the receipts to prove it.

The Destiny’s Child singer took to Instagram on Sunday to hilariously call out a fellow passenger who decided to go barefoot and make himself a little too comfortable on their flight from Chicago to New York.

Keep ReadingShow less
Wolf
Colossal Biosciences/TIME

Scientists Just Brought Dire Wolves Back From Extinction—And Everyone's Thinking The Same Thing

In a stunning achievement, scientists have brought back an animal that went extinct some 13,000 years ago—and a lot of people are not quite ready to celebrate.

The genetically engineered wolf pups resemble the dire wolf, an ancient, long-gone species.

Keep ReadingShow less
Jeff Ross
Mike Coppola/Variety via Getty Images

Comedian Jeff Ross Shares Photos Of Puffed Up Lip After Allergic Reaction To Ice Cream

Insult comic Jeff Ross revealed he had a medical emergency after a show Saturday night that resulted in a trip to the ER. However, he assured fans the show must go on despite "looking like Mickey Rourke at the end of The Wrestler."

Ross recounted the ordeal on Instagram, showing his swollen lip taking over his face from eating burrata ice cream after his Take a Banana for the Ride show in Mill Valley, California, near San Francisco.

Keep ReadingShow less