Elite Acela corridor journalist Jon Karl revealed his disdain for working-class Americans during a recent exchange with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. While discussing the Biden administration’s tariffs on China and the push to reshore American industry, Karl sneered at the idea of reviving U.S. manufacturing, scoffing, “I mean do you – are we going to become a nation of cobblers again?” The remark laid bare the liberal media’s contempt for blue-collar labor and their refusal to acknowledge the economic devastation caused by decades of offshoring.
Karl’s condescension was particularly rich given his earlier attempt to weaponize a quote from Vice President JD Vance, who rightly pointed out the absurdity of America’s economic relationship with China: “We borrow money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture. That is not a recipe for economic prosperity. It’s not a recipe for low prices, and it’s not a recipe for good jobs in the United States of America.” Lutnick wisely sidestepped Karl’s bait, defending the need to rebuild domestic industry without engaging in the media’s petty gotcha games.
Yet the hypocrisy was glaring. Karl clutched his pearls over Vance’s use of the word “peasants” while casually dismissing entire sectors of American manufacturing as mere “cobblers.” There’s nothing shameful about being a cobbler—an honorable and skilled trade—but Karl’s derision speaks volumes about the Acela media’s disconnect from real America. To these coastal elites, the working class is little more than a punchline, their jobs unworthy of protection or respect.
Elite Acela propagandist Jon Karl of ABC shows his disdain for the American working class by asking Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick whether the reindustrialization of America will result in "a nation of cobblers". pic.twitter.com/oACcp4DVZQ
— Jorge Bonilla (@BonillaJL) April 13, 2025
This is precisely why President Donald Trump’s economic agenda resonates with millions of Americans left behind by globalization. His policies—tariffs, tax cuts, and deregulation—have revitalized industries the liberal media wrote off as relics of the past. While journalists like Karl mock the idea of making things in America again, Trump’s America First vision has delivered record-low unemployment, wage growth, and a manufacturing renaissance. The media’s sneering only proves how out of touch they are with the heartland, where hardworking men and women take pride in building, crafting, and producing.