‘This Is a Phenomenon That Nobody Even Thought of, and Now It Is the Rage’ Trump Tweets
There are about 32 million corporations in America, and just a handful have announced they are giving a portion of their employees $1000 bonuses in the wake of the passage of the GOP tax-cuts-for-the-rich bill this week. But in President Donald Trump’s mind, three companies giving out bonuses to less than a half-million workers in a country of 323 million people means “now it is the rage.” (Two companies say they are raising their minimum wage to $15, and one is investing $300 million in worker training and facilities. Five companies in total have announced expenditures in response to the bill.)
Calling it “an unexpected new source of ‘love,'” Trump posted this gleeful yet totally false tweet Friday morning:
Unlike the tax cuts for these huge corporations that make billions in profits, the $1000 bonuses are temporary, just like the tax cuts they may receive.Â
Trump’s tax cuts bill is not “very popular” either – it’s even less popular than President Trump. Just 26 percent of Americans support the legislation.
It’s important to note too that these bonuses are nothing more than PR stunts and attempts to retain employees in a market where available workers are becoming scarce. Unemployment is at a 17-year low, and companies tossing employees $1000 is a small price to pay for loyalty.
Among the companies that have announced the bonuses is AT&T, which is desperate to curry favor with the Trump administration. It wants its proposed merger with Time Warner to be approved. The DOJ is suing to stop it.Â
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