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Jul 14, 2026

Who Is Paying For These?

      From NOTUS:

Morale at the Social Security Administration — which is at a 59-year staffing low due to the Trump administration’s sweeping workforce cuts — is poor.

To fix it, SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano has twice sent staff packages of chocolate-covered pretzels. They’re from his daughter’s company, Pretzables, emblazoned with Pretzable’s branding, website and phone number, as well as a line thanking employees for their work.

The pretzels, staff tell NOTUS, have not addressed the underlying morale issue. (“It’s tone-deaf,” one SSA field office employee said.) They have, however, raised even more questions around Bisignano’s leadership — specifically around the ethics of sending staff pretzels from his daughter’s company.

     It’s hard to imagine anyone thinking it would be OK for the government to pay for these pretzels but this is the Trump Administration and anything goes so I’d like to hear the question answered.

12 comments:

  1. Tax payers subsidizing the nepo babies loser business!

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  2. Not being sarcastic but I’m sure agency funds were not used. Still it’s the appearance of ethical issue that’s part of problem. Some other questions:

    * Did Frank send pretzels to the people on 800# who are overworked and underpaid? I’ve not seen either Pretzel Gate instance mention then so guess not.
    * What about the SSA employees who process disability claims? Don’t think so.
    * Did Frank send pretzels to any IRS employees?

    I’d love to know which items were sent, the retail for each items, how much Frank paid for each item. And total spent on SSA per instance.


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    Replies
    1. Frank, like his boss, is a famously greedy sonofabitch, so I wouldn’t be so sure about that

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    2. We had “pretzel day” at CO. Was thinking soft pretzels? …not soft and not chocolate covered either. Just little bags of plain pretzels. No idea who is getting the chocolate covered ones.

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  3. Bisignano should have asked before he acted.

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  4. Patel should investigate pretzelgate.
    🥨

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  5. I work from home everyday. Will he send them to my house please?

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  6. Slow news day, Chuck?

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  7. Any retro-stress chocolate pretzels available for retirees? My stress magically disappeared, but I still want some delicious chocolate nepo pretzels!! Yum Yum

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  8. Apparently he hasn't watched The Office when Stanley get super excited about pretzel day. Lmao

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  9. Pretzables. What a dumb name.

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