Just a quick diary because I haven’t seen this yet, but McConnell says he’s going to pass the House Emergency coronavirus bill with no changes.
thehill.com/…
He’s already crushed the economy and the stock market by delaying, then he tried suggesting he was going to scrap this bill and start over, but now he’s admitting he has to pass the House Bill. This is good.
And I’m calling this “Step 1” because there is definitely going to be more legislation to follow, which will include much larger fiscal stimulus, expanded sick leave, help for small and large businesses and individuals, etc. That’s going to take a little more time, but this bill — which is almost entirely based on Democratic priorities, like food aid to the hungry, expanded unemployment, paid sick leave for some 30 million workers (not enough but it’s a start), and generally focuses on getting money to individuals — not workers or the tax cut/payroll tax holiday garbage Republicans initially wanted to do. Getting this bill passed like this now also means some of the things Dems want and Republicans normally fight against and will increase our leverage in the bigger negotiations ahead (since they can’t hold us up for what’s already passed and now if they want, say, a bailout for hotels that Dems aren’t excited about, we will be able to extract new concessions beyond everything we got in this bill).
(And sorry if this is sloppy — posting quickly from my phone, which isn’t the most nimble for new diaries)