Christian personal finance guru Dave Ramsey started an online war with his incisive criticisms of stimulus checks that helped Americans withstand the coronavirus crisis.
“I don’t believe in stimulus checks, because if $ 600 or $ 1,400 changes your life, you’re already screwed,” Ramsey told Fox News during an interview on Thursday that later went viral.
“You have a career problem, you have a debt problem, you have a relationship problem, you have a mental health problem – something else is going on if $ 600 changes your life,” continued Ramsey.
The 60-year-old radio writer and presenter, known for his “Financial Peace University” program, also called the payments “political rhetoric” and compared them to “peeing in a forest fire”.
Ramsey’s comments generated a violent reaction on Twitter, where his name became a trend topic on Thursday.
Some critics pointed out that Ramsey’s comments contradicted his own budget mantras, which focus on paying off debts and accumulating savings for emergencies.
“Dave Ramsey: if $ 600 changed your life, you’re already screwed. Dave Ramsey too: a $ 1,000 emergency fund will change your life. But only if you buy my books and courses, and pay my expensive consultants for more bad financial advice, ”Lindsay VanSomeren tweeted.
“Dave Ramsey’s financial advice in a nutshell: already be rich”, another popular tweet reading.
Ramsey doubled his arguments on his radio show on Thursday, saying he found it “hilarious” and “sad” that his comments went viral. “Snowflakes are melting everywhere,” he said.
In Ramsey’s opinion, anyone who thinks that a stimulus payment will renew their budget is “an idiot” because it depends on politicians to help them survive.
“The point is, you’re waiting for the government to fix your life, and as long as you wait for Washington, DC to fix your life, you’re going to be shit,” he said. “Your life is going to be shit. And this is not a shame. This is shameful stupidity. “
Ramsey – who launched his financial consulting empire after his real estate business went bankrupt and bankrupted him – did not mention the COVID-19 pandemic, which sparked a historic economic crisis and put millions of Americans out of work.
He, however, admitted that he would not refuse a $ 600 check if it was offered to him.
“I was broke and even then I didn’t think that $ 600 would change my life, when $ 600 was a lot of money,” he said. “Would $ 600 help? Yes, if you give it to me, I accept. “