Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters following escalation of tensions this week between the U.S. and Iran, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Do you know who in Congress likes to posture and stall? Well, it’s not Nancy Pelosi.
That, according — it seems — to Nancy Pelosi.
On Monday, the Speaker of the House and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer jointly warned GOP legislators to “stop posturing” over coronavirus relief.
That message comes despite the fact that Dems have held up cash for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) with their push for things such as race- and sex-based handouts.
Chuck and Nancy issued a statement ripping Republicans for stalling on stimulus funds and insisting the GOP compromise on an “interim” assistance measure.
Courtesy of The Hill, here’s how Pelosi and Schumer put it:
“We have real problems facing this country, and it’s time for the Republicans to quit the political posturing by proposing bills they know will not pass either chamber and get serious and work with us towards a solution.”
Posturing, like this?–
As for stalling with proposals that can’t pass both chambers while serious work takes a back seat…do they mean…like impeachment?
Either way, as noted by The Daily Wire, the core disagreement concerns the PPP add-on bill, which would “inject an additional $250 billion into the $350 billion program designed to provide low- and diminishing-interest loans to businesses with less than 500 employees affected by coronavirus-related lockdowns.”
More from TDW:
Even though the program has been in operation just over a week, banks like JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo report that they’re out of funds and have already closed their application windows.
Democrats don’t want a “clean” PPP bill, however, and are demanding a much larger relief package, with $100 billion for hospitals and $150 billion in funding to state and city governments, with an eye to boosting government-sponsored food aid programs.
And they’re set to fight the patriarchy: Congress’s top two Dems want guarantees that businesses owned by minorities and women will be sent to the front of the line for some of that PPP cash.
They’ve evolved, somewhat: In her weekly press briefing just days ago, Nancy claimed there was “no data” indicating that the PPP was in danger of being depleted.
But now she and Chuck are singing a different tune.
From their statement:
“Small businesses, hospitals, frontline workers and state and local governments across the country are struggling to keep up with this national crisis. They need more help from the federal government and they need it fast. … While the Trump Administration struggles to figure out how to distribute the funds provided for in the CARES Act, it’s clear that those appropriated amounts will not be enough to cover the tremendous need.”
The dynamic duo also believe “further changes must also be made to the SBA’s [Small Business Administration] assistance initiative, as many eligible small businesses continue to be excluded from the Paycheck Protection Program by big banks with significant lending capacity.”
Additionally, the pair wants funds for personal protective equipment as well as coronavirus testing.
“We all desire an end to the shutdown orders so we can get Americans back to work and back to normal.”
All this comes after the Senate blocked two coronavirus relief bills — one from the GOP as well as an attempt at expansion by Democrats — on Thursday.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell offered a response:
“We will continue to seek a clean PPP funding increase. We hope our Democratic colleagues familiarize themselves with the facts and the data before the program runs dry.”
Well. That’s clear.
I’m still reeling over Nancy Pelosi accusing someone of posturing. Maybe it’s in her contract that no one else can do that.
-ALEX
See 3 more pieces from me:
Will the Pandemic Lead to a Surge of American Innovation? One Billionaire Thinks So
A Bakery Avoids Pandemic Bankruptcy by Creating the Most Perfect, Crappy Cake
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