WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats have powered a massive $3 trillion coronavirus relief bill through the House, an election-year measure designed to brace a U.S. economy in free fall and a health care system struggling to contain a pandemic still pummeling the country.
Can’t say I’m too upset that this bill will go nowhere… when you have things like
more than $100 billion to pay health insurance premiums for the unemployed and $164 billion to make an “employee retention” tax credit for businesses more generous.
Which are disguised giveaways to corporations and the 1%, I am kind of curious as to why this didn’t get more GOP support.
The bottom line is the GOP will never support anything proposed by the Democrats anyway, so why put in these types of sweeteners.
One must wonder what the rank and file Republicans, even the frothing aerosolers, will think when their Senate bullies refuse to help them again.
Can they hold on to their middle-class voters if they deny them the sustenance only this kind of stimulus can provide?
As for the gifts to the rich, everyone needs to remember, the only way to make the changes that can prevent this kind of largess towards the very corporations that set us on the course to so much of our difficulty, is from inside the party, there’s no magic splinter majority available for our purpose that doesn’t dis-empower the whole party.
Tolerate this kind of corporate self-indulgence for now.
We’ve survived it for 200 plus years, we can watch them roll around in their pile of gold a little longer, as we prepare to win the future.
There is no doubt, we will one day address all of these greedy institutions when we get real power, but until then, assuming we can dictate terms and refuse to accept unpalatable policies and platforms only keeps us from getting the power in the first place.
If we want a progressive future, we’d all best be willing to get there through a moderate gateway because that is what lies between us and that future.
The only alternative is Trump.
It’s almost like the GOP is making this political? Not quite sure I get how screwing over people in need helps you with voters, but then again, it did get Trump selected.
The R’s really are afraid their remnant All-American feudal structure is on the verge of collapse, these commoners won’t work for peanuts any more, once they’ve drunk from the golden trough of easy money that the wealthy depend on for their excess.
“It may help the cannabis industry, but it won’t help Main Street,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
The race for The Stoopidest Award … continues …
In Colorado, all those shops ARE on Main Street… go figure.
The R’s really are afraid their remnant All-American feudal structure is on the verge of collapse,
There are opportunities in these moments. I really hope it just doesn’t return to “let’s go shopping America!”
Not sure why TPM is publishing right-wing bs from the AP under it’s masthead:
“A partial estimate of tax provisions alone revealed eye-popping costs: $412 billion to renew $1,200 cash payments to individuals” - I’m sure the prior AP articles said the same about the same payments in earlier bills, or even better, called out the eye-popping costs of the biz bailouts? If not, maybe TPM should treat the AP as the bad-faith actor it is and not amplify its lazy reflexively right-leaning (which is really WRONG-leaning) both-sides messages? I get the need for weekend content, but do better about choosing it. And if there’s not good content on a subject, and TPM doesn’t have the resources to publish its own work on a subject, would be better to not publish anything on the subject at all rather than putting your imprimatur on faux-deficit hawk drivel.
What is the Democratic wishlist? Just curious. From my point of view it’s:
Campaign finance reform. Publicly-funded elections and instant runoff voting.
Healthcare reform. Ditch insurance companies and regulate the use of actuarial tables to guide healthcare cost structures
Infrastructure investment. Modernize the economy by providing good jobs that build up energy infrastructure and enable high-speed internet everywhere.
Criminal justice reform. We need a system that rehabilitates and isolates, but doesn’t unduly punish.
Of course there’s more, but these were just the most impactful things I could think of. I think this present crisis lines up in a lot of ways with those issues.
Thank you Speaker Pelosi. Let the Republicans squirm on this one trying to explain why they can’t support at least some of its provisions.
It’s clear the Democrats are for the common man (the majority) while the Republicans are for the wealthy (the minority). Who said the Republicans are against minorities?
I don’t know about this bill but … I find it interesting that the Cons are ONE MORE TIME trying to shift this whole ‘I spend what I want, I give it to who I want’ to the Dems just in time for the election. I can ‘remember’ sequester when they were worried Obama would pay down the debt too quickly…er…spend money and cripple us right up until they got the reins and blew up the debt/deficit…NOW they are blaming the recklessness on the pandemic and the Democrats and Kev is acting all ‘outraged’. Oh yeah.
the grim reapers arrival is imminent
" Polls show GOP voters are satisfied with the federal response and aren’t agitating for more."
Does that mean every GOP voter is working ,not sick,paying their bills on time ?
I’m thinkin’ Nancy ruined Mitch’s weekend. And she did it on purpose. Women and their wily ways - or feeling like you got hit in the face with a shovel … but there’s no shovel to be found.
The GOP still does not get it.
This is the absolute worst viral infection in U.S. history and Trump is at the center of it–in a highly negative way–at every turn.
Don’t ever rely on polls unless you actually read the polling data itself.
Just wish there had been something in the legislation for REAL small business; ya know, the Doughnut Shops with 3 employees or the Bike shops, independent auto garages…all needing money to help their employees stay on the job.
Sadly, it’s what they generally seem to do. AP used to be a fairly reliable source - not so much anymore.