NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy sent home a message of unity from his perch aboard the International Space Station.
"There's hope in being united. When I look down at the planet, it's just a big, beautiful spaceship that has 7 billion astronauts on it." https://t.co/SAVem9CAT2
— CNN (@CNN) May 12, 2020
I may actually have to subscribe (briefly) to Disney+, just to see the masterpiece for myself:
Broadway hit ‘Hamilton’ to arrive on streaming site Disney+ in July https://t.co/r35F1K3sFa pic.twitter.com/aeVz0we5Ph
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 13, 2020
And speaking of revolutionary actions…
– An extra $13 in hazard pay for essential workers
– Unemployment benefits won't expire in July
– Another round of direct payments to most households https://t.co/y1EvDzEVQS— Arthur Delaney (@ArthurDelaneyHP) May 12, 2020
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi unveils a $3 trillion new coronavirus aid package the House is expected to take up Friday for a vote. Pelosi has encouraged Congress to “go big” with the next virus aid package to help cash-strapped states. https://t.co/LwFo33KGBE
— The Associated Press (@AP) May 12, 2020
… The House is expected to vote on the package as soon as Friday. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said there is no “urgency.” The Senate will wait until after Memorial Day to consider options.
“We must think big, for the people, now,” Pelosi said from the speaker’s office at the Capitol.
“Not acting is the most expensive course,” she said…
The Democrats’ Heroes Act is built around nearly $1 trillion for states, cities and tribal governments to avert layoffs, focused chiefly on $375 billion for smaller suburban and rural municipalities largely left out of earlier bills.
The bill will offer a fresh round of $1,200 direct cash aid to individuals, increased to up to $6,000 per household, and launches a $175 billion housing assistance fund to help pay rents and mortgages. There is $75 billion more for virus testing.
It would continue, through January, the $600-per-week boost to unemployment benefits. It adds a 15% increase for food stamps, new subsidies for laid-off workers to pay health insurance premiums under a COBRA law and a special “Obamacare” sign-up period. For businesses, it provides an employee retention tax credit.
There’s $200 billion in “hazard pay” for essential workers on the front lines of the crisis…
The latest package extends some provisions from previous aid packages, and adds new ones.
There is $25 billion for the U.S. Postal Service. There is help for the 2020 Census, including the bureau’s request to delay deadlines for turning over apportionment and redistricting data. For the November election, the bill provides $3.6 billion to help local officials prepare for the challenges of voting during the pandemic.
The popular Payroll Protection Program, which has been boosted in past bills, would see another $10 billion to ensure under-served businesses and nonprofit organizations have access to grants through a disaster loan program…
House Democrats' new coronavirus bill extends the $600 per week Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation to January 31, 2021.
It's currently set to expire at the end of July 2020.
This could turn into a big fight as numerous Senate Republicans want to curtail that benefit.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) May 12, 2020
#MoscowMitch can’t even pretend to care any more about his so-called (voting) constituents:
News: Mitch McConnell pours cold water on the new House bill, calling it aspirational and not "designed to deal with reality." He says the Senate hasn't decided if it'll do another relief package and doesn't plan to negotiate with Democrats. He evokes the rising national debt. pic.twitter.com/KnoY003H47
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) May 12, 2020
Record unemployment and more than 80 thousand Americans dead. People are terrified, hungry, worried, broke, exhausted, stressed, and pissed off. And Mitch McConnell acting like he’s in no hurry is an absolute outrage. Be angry. This is as bad as it looks.
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) May 12, 2020
Meanwhile, Chuck Schumer endorses the HEROES Act. pic.twitter.com/9ozo966ePL
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) May 12, 2020
Do you still believe Putin pays Trump? We can’t really care about anything you say until you clear that up. https://t.co/e43ZXiFaFw
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) May 13, 2020
Wednesday Morning Open Thread: Markers ThrownPost + Comments (175)