User Clip: Trump on TVA: "When we want them to do something, they're not there for us"

During a press briefing on April 8, 2020, to provide an update on the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Trump suggested the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA’s) head, Jeff Lyash, whom he said he does not know, is overpaid, adding, “when we want them to do something, they're not there for us.”

Regulatory filings released by TVA in November 2019 show Lyash was paid a base annual salary of $920,00 when he joined TVA in April 2019, and benefits which increased his total compensation to $8.12 million. Lyash succeeded Bill Johnson, who received a compensation package in fiscal 2018 valued at $8.1 million.

Reporter: Members of your administration and members of Congress have pointed out the top paid federal employee, it’s not the president, it’s the head of the Tennessee Valley Authority, and he made $8 million last year.

Trump: It’s ridiculous. I agree. It’s ridiculous. I think it’s the highest paid government … long before I got here, you said Tennessee Valley Authori close