Liberal comedian David Cross deleted his tweet, which mocked the anxiety that millions of Americans are feeling right now because of the economic situation brought about by the pandemic. Cross’s tweet was a reaction to another tweet by political commentator Michael Knowles. Knowles’ tweet was about encouraging businesses to start to reopen again. Cross responded with a mocking tone.

A lot of people were offended by Cross’ message as it seems to be downplaying the economic suffering that is being caused by the business closures brought about by the pandemic. Because of the backlash, Cross was forced to delete the tweet but did not apologize, saying that the intent for the message remains.

The pandemic is causing significant damage to the US economy. In the last week of March, more than six million Americans filed for unemployment. That came as millions of workers in the retail, restaurant, and travel industries lost their jobs because of business shutdowns.

The United States is now the epicenter of the pandemic, with the death rates continuing to go up. As more and more American cities are being forced to limit the movement of their population, businesses are starting to suffer as well. All of the 50 states in the country have reported a rise in the number of unemployment claims at an unprecedented rate. Hawaii’s $17 billion tourism industry has been halted completely, while the unemployment rate in Louisiana is predicted to rise to 44.9% as the petroleum industry is forced to shut down. Under this situation, Cross’ tweet understandably drew a great deal of criticism as an increasing number of Americans face financial difficulties.

The mediocre comedian has been a vocal critic of President Trump. During the 2016 presidential elections, Cross predicted that Trump would win the Republican nomination but would lose to the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. With his failed prediction, Cross has instead doubled-down on his hatred for Trump and has used his criticism of the president to try and revive his dying career with his stale and tired jokes that make fun of the president and the administration.