Not every Republican is sitting around sulking or lying or needlessly attacking the press. Congressman Dusty Johnson, recognizing that we are in the midst of the worst public health crisis in a century and a concomitantly precarious economic situation, said today he supports a new stimulus package that would pump $900 billion of coronavirus relief into the economy:
The bill includes $180 billion in additional unemployment insurance that would provide an extra $300 weekly benefit for 18 weeks; $288 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program to assist small businesses; $16 billion for testing, vaccine development and distribution; $45 billion for airlines and mass transit; an extension of existing student loan payment deferrals and rental housing assistance; and a new liability provision to block pandemic-related lawsuits temporarily with the intent to give individual states time to develop their own legal response, among others [staff, “Rep. Dusty Johnson, Lawmakers Back $900B Stimulus Package,” KOTA_TV, 2020.12.01].
That liability protection is a sop to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who this summer declared making businesses immune from coronavirus lawsuits non-negotiable, even though there’s not much evidence that such a proposal is necessary. That sop isn’t working:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rejected a proposed bipartisan coronavirus stimulus package Tuesday amid months of congressional inaction on curbing the economic damage from the outbreak.
The Kentucky Republican, who has supported about $500 billion in new aid spending, said he wants to pass what he called a “targeted relief bill” this year. McConnell said he spoke to White House officials about what President Donald Trump would sign into law. He plans to offer potential solutions to GOP senators and get their feedback.
“We just don’t have time to waste time,” he told reporters in response to the roughly $908 billion plan put together by bipartisan members of the GOP-controlled Senate and Democratic-held House [Jacob Pramuk, “McConnell Shoots Down Bipartisan $900 Billion Coronavirus Stimulus Plan as Stalemate Drags On,” CNBC, 2020.12.01].
If Senator McConnell insists on playing Grinch to Dusty’s Santa, it might not just be coronavirus relief that dies out this month. A failure of bipartisan cooperation in Congress could lead to a government shutdown for the holidays:
Government funding for nearly all federal agencies expires on Dec. 11. Congressional negotiators have made progress on how to divvy up around $1.4 trillion to be spent by Sept. 30, 2021, the end of the current fiscal year, according to a House of Representatives Democratic aide.
But more granular details are still unresolved and votes by the full House and Senate on a massive funding bill may come close to bumping up against that Dec. 11 deadline.
…Failure by the Democratic-controlled House and Republican-controlled Senate to pass a spending bill could have dire consequences. Some healthcare operations could be short-staffed or otherwise interrupted at a time when COVID-19 cases in the United States have been spiking. Nearly 267,000 people have died in the United States as a result of the virus.
The massive spending bill could be the vehicle for providing billions of dollars to state and local governments to help them handle coronavirus vaccines that are on track to be available in coming weeks and months.
Beyond pandemic worries, if government funds were allowed to run out next month, airport operations could slow, national parks would close, some medical research would be put on hold and thousands of other programs would be jeopardized as government workers are furloughed, further hurting the struggling U.S. economy [Richard Cowan, “U.S. Congress Races to Avoid December Government Shutdown amid Pandemic,” Reuters via U.S. News and World Report, 2020.11.30].
Uff da. If we don’t pass more stimulus or even a simple spending bill, the United States will be in a world of hurt, in terms of public health and our general economic and social well-being. Get on that phone, Dusty. Get your colleagues to put away partisanship and just solve our immediate problems.
Boo Mr. Dusty. Conservatives don’t spend money we don’t have and handing out cash to people doesn’t keep the covid bugs away.
Dirty is about triple off what is needed. That 900 billion will not do much of anything. Think bigger dude, out think bigger. We need about 4 trillion pronto.
Grudznick from a taker state talking about handing cash out to people, it’s really pretty funny.
Mr. Anderson, why must you be so negative and down in the mouth? Spread love, and happiness. But if you must pile your hate upon someone, it might as well be grudznick who can shoulder your burdens for you.
Why Gruds, you perceive truth as hate, you must be from athol.
Notice that moscow john was standing behind moscow mitch at that news conference.
Dusty’s colleagues are in the US Congress (the house). The Congress passed a much more broad relief bill months ago. Dusty’s Congressional colleagues are NOT the problem – not who he needs to talk to. It is the Senate who are the problem. It is Thune and Rounds he needs to talk to. At this point, they are neither Dusty’s colleagues nor the American peoples’ friends. They are playing McConnel’s political games with people’s lives.
Marlboro Barbie has been standing behind McCTurtlefartface for a number of years and this year he is the Majority wim…er….whip. His job is to smile purty in photo ops and round up votes for sick wingnut legislation.
ps McCTurtlefartface and MB are trying to put 490 billion in covid relief where Biden can’t access it for covid relief.
The states need $$$ to house & distribute vaccines, individuals need $$$ to eat and pay a bill here and there, small businesses need $$$ to keep afloat. But God forbid conservatives should give dollars to citizens in any form but tax-cuts for the 1% and corporations. Basically, the GOP has rediscovered its deficit hawk, after putting it in a cage throughout the entire Trump administration.
Mitch McConnell: the world’s most obvious argument for universal term limits.
Grudz; if as you say “conservatives don’t spend money we don’t have” then how did the National Debt get so damned big under Bush? Remember the liberal Clinton that LAST balanced our budget? And how about current ballooning of the debt–don’t try telling me the last 4 years have been a liberal administration or they’ll laugh you out of the Campbell Street Cafe covered in biscuit gravy. I know, you think Mitch and his shafting the American people by refusing senate votes on a ‘Democrat bill are hunky-dory, but Mitch sure isn’t helping the Republican label much now, is he? Moscow Mitch and Trump=peas in a pod!