After claiming the Democrats did “jiu jitsu” on the $2 trillion coronavirus aid package in order to focus more on individuals rather than corporations, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who turns 80 today, said the House will take up the measure tomorrow.
While she said Thursday that she is “very proud of the product” and expects it to pass with strong bipartisan support, she does not expect unanimous consent.
Echoing warnings of public health officials nationwide, Pelosi said getting coronavirus under control “won’t happen unless we respect science, science, science. And for those who say we choose prayer over science, I say science is an answer to our prayers.”
Pelosi, who worked closely with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on negotiating the Phase III bill, said “with all the respect in the world” for Mnuchin, “there was this idea they put forth there would be a $500 billion slush fund for the Secretary of the Treasury with no accountability, whatsoever. Are you kidding?” Pelosi said she is pleased the new language in the bill has a Treasury inspector general and a five-person Congressional oversight committee to oversee the distribution of those funds.
Pelosi is expected to introduce the 880-page Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (or CARES) Act to the House tomorrow. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said the chamber will likely consider the bill by voice vote, with an option for House members to debate on the floor.
The bill faced last-minute opposition from both sides of the Senate aisle. Some Republicans argued provisions of the act disincentivized people from working while Democrats argued there was too much relief for corporations, rather than individuals.
While listing off changes to the bill that she was happy with, Pelosi noted that money to major corporations like airlines are conditional upon those funds going directly to workers.
“With all three of our bills, we have put families and workers first,” she said. She also expressed hope that a potential Phase IV of the relief bill will offer even more worker protections and increased state and local funding.
As she urged people to continue staying home and following warnings of health officials, Pelosi said “the markets are not going to succeed unless we take care of people,” she said.
Without naming the president directly, Pelosi pushed back on the administration’s suggestion that the federal government ease social distancing guidelines and urged him to invoke the Defense Production Act to increase production of ventilators and coordinate distribution. If the nation does not act carefully, she warned “the light at the end of the tunnel may be a train coming at us.”
She also said she was disappointed that Republicans would not agree to an increase in food stamp benefits. In response, she has included that as a priority for another phase of the deal. Other priorities include expanding Family and Medical Leave Act and workplace health and safety protections, expanding the allowance of pension smoothing, and creating a better funding formula for the District of Columbia, which was classified as a territory rather than a state in the Phase III plan.
Though Pelosi said ‘nothing surprises me around here,” she found it “curious” that Washington D.C. was treated “in a very discriminatory way.”
“It doesn’t make sense unless you have some other motivation,” she said.
Still, Pelosi said, “We will have a victory tomorrow for America’s workers.”
But although she may be planning to celebrate a legislative victory tomorrow, her more personal birthday celebration will have to wait until she can hug her grandchildre
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After failing to take control of northern and western Ukraine, Russia is shifting its focus to the east. As both sides continue to pour reinforcements into the region, officials are expecting more conventional combat involving tanks, artillery, and aircraft that could shape the war's biggest battles yet. Doug Collins, a former Georgia congressman, joined Cheddar to discuss the change in Russia's tactics.
Catching you up on what you need to know on Apr 14, 2022, with the U.S. sending $800M to Ukraine, updates on the subway shooting in Brooklyn, Gov. Abbott putting a pause on his southern border truck inspections, migrants being bused from Texas to Washington, DC, the travel mask mandate extending until May 3, and more.
This March 19, 2018, file photo shows the Yelp app on an iPad in Baltimore. Yelp reports financial results Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019. The online review service will cover the travel expenses of employees who have to travel out of state for abortions, joining the ranks of major employers trying to help workers affected by restrictions being placed on the procedure in Texas and other states. The benefit announced Tuesday, April 12, 2022 covers Yelp's entire workforce of 4,000 employees, but seems most likely to have its biggest immediate impact on its 200 workers in Texas, which has passed a law banning abortions within the state after six weeks of pregnancy. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
