Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) told the media that "you all could do a better job of selling" her party's $3.5 trillion budget plan.
A reporter asked Pelosi at a Tuesday press briefing if Democrats "need to do a better job at messaging" on their controversial spending package, a crucial part of President Joe Biden's domestic agenda.
"Well, I think you all could do a better job of selling it, to be very frank with you," Pelosi responded.
The speaker's apparent expectation that journalists should advance Democrats' agenda comes as 63 percent of Americans say they have little or no trust in the media.
The spending package stalled in the Senate because of Democratic holdouts Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (W.Va.), who objected to the massive price tag. Democratic leaders are trying to cut measures from the bill in an attempt to appeal to Sinema and Manchin.