10.21.20

Don’t Take Senate Democrats Seriously Or Literally

Last Week, Democrats Demanded The Senate Make A New COVID Relief Bill A Priority, Yet This Week They’re Going To Again Block Hundreds Of Billions In Assistance For Families, Small Businesses, And Schools

 

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “This week, the Senate will vote on more coronavirus relief that Congress could deliver to American families right now. Month after month, Speaker Pelosi has held up urgent assistance for workers, families, schools, and our healthcare system. Month after month, she has refused to set aside non-COVID-related demands and far-left policy riders that she knows are sabotaging any shot at a deal…. The Speaker has said over and over again that she does not believe it’s better for workers to get ‘something’ rather than ‘nothing.’ And thus far, Senate Democrats have gone along with it. We could have passed hundreds of billions of dollars in relief more than a month ago. But our Democratic colleagues voted in lock step to filibuster the relief and kill the bill. Unless Democrats got every single non-COVID-related wish list item they were after, American families would get nothing…. This has been their position for months. All-or-nothing obstruction. It’s got to stop.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 10/19/2020)

  • LEADER McCONNELL: “So [this week], the Senate is going to vote. We will see whether our Democratic colleagues in this chamber agree that families deserve nothing rather than something… or whether they are ready to let the Senate make law across the huge areas where we do not even disagree…. on Wednesday, the Senate will vote again on a larger bill. It would pour hundreds of billions of dollars into that PPP expansion plus more federal unemployment insurance, more money for safe schools, more money for testing, more money for vaccines, and many other important priorities. Nobody thinks this proposal would resolve every problem forever. What it does contain is half a trillion dollars of good that Congress can do right now, through programs that Democrats do not even say they oppose.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 10/19/2020)

 

Sen. Schumer Declared A Bill Full Of Relief Provisions Both Parties Agree On To Be ‘Unacceptable,’ Signaling Democrats Will Block COVID Relief Yet Again

SENATE MINORITY LEADER CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): “Let me be clear: the Republican proposal was unacceptable a month ago. It remains unacceptable now, even more so that the crisis has gotten even worse.” (Sen. Schumer, Remarks, 10/19/2020)

 

Democrats Last Week: ‘The Senate Should Be Working Day And Night To Provide Economic Relief To Families,’ ‘We Ought To Be Providing Assistance To The Millions Of Americans Who Have Lost Their Jobs And Face Economic Hardship,’ ‘We Can’t Wait Any Longer To Get The American People The Support They Need’

SEN. DICK DURBIN (D-IL): “Witness after witness [in last week’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing] made it clear that this should not be the breakneck priority of the United States Senate. COVID-19 should be our priority...” (Sen. Durbin, Press Conference, 10/20/2020)

SEN. PATTY MURRAY (D-WA): “Today, instead of working on a COVID-19 relief package that people across the country desperately need, Senate Republicans started hearings for their SCOTUS nominee.” (Sen. Murray, @PattyMurray, Twitter, 10/12/2020)

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA): “Americans are right now suffering from a deadly pandemic and we are also suffering a historic economic crisis. The Senate should be working day and night to provide economic relief to families …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/14/2020)

  • HARRIS: “The Senate, I strongly believe, … needs to be laser focused on you, the American people, to help you get through this pandemic. To do so, the Senate urgently needs to pass critical financial relief for those who are struggling because of this pandemic, and many are struggling. People need help.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ): “We could be as the Senate--we should be as the Senate--working in a bipartisan way to try to get this virus under control, to get relief to people who are hurting, who are struggling, who are afraid, to help people who are unemployed, to let doctors and nurses and hospital staffs, putting their lives on the line right now in state after state where COVID is rising, know that we have their backs in a pandemic.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/12/2020)

  • BOOKER: “… we’re in the middle of a pandemic. And we have tens of thousands of new COVID infections every single day, widespread food insecurity…. People across our country are struggling, and unfortunately we see that we are right now not dealing with this crisis.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN): “We should be passing coronavirus relief like the House just did …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)

  • KLOBUCHAR: “And you can see here in this room the misplaced priorities of this Republican run Senate. And it’s in your hands to change it. Are they working to pass a bill to help Americans to get the testing they need to save their lives? Are they working to help the moms trying to balance a toddler on their lap while balancing a laptop on their desk? Are they trying to help our seniors isolated missing graduations and birthdays?” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/12/2020)

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): “Today, we ought to be working on improving American health care. We ought to be fighting COVID-19, which has infected 8 million Americans and killed more than 215,000. We should be producing a national testing strategy, instituting effective contact tracing, and securing sufficient PPE. We ought to be providing assistance to the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs and face economic hardship and heartbreak…. Senate Republicans are refusing to address American health care or COVID-19 or economic relief …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/12/2020)

SEN. SEHLDON WHITEHOUSE (D-RI): “…we are doing nothing about the COVID epidemic around us.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)

SEN. MAZIE HIRONO (D-HI): “I want to reiterate my objections to holding this nomination hearing instead of working to provide relief for the millions of Americans who are suffering during this pandemic.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)

  • HIRONO: “Many Americans agree with Veronica. They are sitting at their kitchen tables wondering how they are gonna buy food, how they’re gonna pay rent. Millions of them … they don’t have jobs. They are going to foodbanks for the first time in their lives…. So here we are, racing forward with this nomination while the rest of the country is wondering what the heck is the Senate doing …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/13/2020)
  • HIRONO: “… 200,000 Americans dead, no pandemic relief bill insight for the American people …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/14/2020)
  • HIRONO: “I have a letter from the National Education Association which represents 3 million educators serving 50 million students. They are urging the Senate to focus on a COVID-19 relief bill …” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/15/2020)

SEN. PAT LEAHY (D-VT): “And I might say we shouldn’t be spending time on this when we’re doing absolutely nothing to pass a much-needed COVID bill…. More than 212,000 Americans have died due to COVID. Millions more are hurting. The virus is spiking again across the country, but Senate Republicans have nothing to say about that. The Senate is wearing blinders to the grim realities facing Americans. Instead of talking about COVID and doing something to help the American people, we’re engaged in this mad rush to fill a Supreme Court vacancy on the eve of a presidential election.” (U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing, 10/12/2020)

SEN. SHERROD BROWN (D-OH): “Here’s a thread of everything Trump, McConnell, and Senate Republicans should be doing to help Americans get through this pandemic - … More stimulus checks…. Extending unemployment insurance…. Supporting schools….” (Sen. Brown, @SenSherrodBrown, Twitter, 10/19/2020)

SEN. MAGGIE HASSAN (D-NH): “Today Senate Republicans are holding a hearing to rush through Judge Barrett to the Supreme Court. [The Majority Leader] has chosen to hold this hearing instead of working with [Senate Democrats] to pass another major COVID-19 relief bill. It’s obvious where his priorities lie.” (Sen. Hassan, @SenatorHassan, Twitter, 10/13/2020)

SEN. TAMMY BALDWIN (D-WI): “Millions of Americans need relief now. Instead of working on bipartisan COVID19 relief legislation, Senate Republicans are rushing this SCOTUS nomination …” (Sen. Tammy Baldwin, @SenatorBaldwin, Twitter, 10/16/2020)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT): “The Senate today should not be dealing with a Supreme Court nomination … What we should be focusing on is a strong stimulus package which protects unemployed workers and their families.” (Sen. Sanders, @SenSanders, Twitter, 10/14/2020)

SEN. CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO (D-NV): “It is past time Leader McConnell brought up COVID legislation for a vote. We can’t wait any longer to get the American people the support they need.” (Sen. Cortez Masto, @SenCortezMasto, Twitter, 10/13/2020)

SEN. JACKY ROSEN (D-NV): “Frontline workers, small businesses, & families all across the country are hurting. I urge my colleagues to come together on a bipartisan, comprehensive COVID19 relief package that fully meets the challenges Americans are facing during the pandemic. The country’s counting on us.” (Sen. Rosen, @SenJackyRosen, Twitter, 10/13/2020)

SEN. DOUG JONES (D-AL): “Every week that Congress fails to pass more COVID relief, millions more Americans struggle to pay their bills and put food on the table. We have to stand up for working families and pass a comprehensive bill ASAP to help the folks who are struggling.” (Sen. Jones, @SenDougJones, Twitter, 10/18/2020)

SEN. GARY PETERS (D-MI): “I have heard from families, workers, small business owners and community leaders who are still facing serious challenges because of the COVID19 pandemic. We need to come together to pass comprehensive, bipartisan relief so Michiganders can get the help they need NOW.” (Sen. Peters, @SenGaryPeters, Twitter, 10/15/2020)

 

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Related Issues: Economy, Senate Democrats, COVID-19, Education, Small Business, Appropriations