RT/Amplify these Senate Dems Tweets
Senator Hassan (D-NH): Voting is the most fundamental right in our democracy. As we approach the election, we must provide additional funding so that @USPS is well-equipped to handle absentee ballots.
Senator Stabenow (D-MI): The President’s latest executive orders are another cruel political game pitting unemployed Americans against those providing essential state and local services. First, $400 per week is still a major cut in critically needed income for unemployed Americans. LINK
Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH): The President’s EOs don’t do nearly enough to provide the lasting relief that Granite Staters desperately need. He must work w/ Congress to make a deal. GOP leadership’s foot dragging has gone on for far too long. A bipartisan bill is what’s needed to get NH urgent assistance!LINK
Senator Warner (D-VA): Like many of the President’s failed business ventures, this is a giant scam. LINK
Senator Warner (D-VA): It’s worse than I thought. Assuming that this executive order is constitutional, which is dubious, the President’s directive on unemployment insurance raids $44 billion from the Disaster Relief Fund to create a new program that underfunded states will have to set up themselves. LINK
Senator Brown (D-OH): The President is trying to save face with toothless Executive Orders. His actions do nothing to help the working families hurt by his lack of leadership. President Trump needs to negotiate with Democrats in good faith – something he should have done MONTHS ago. LINK
Senator Blumenthal (D-CT): These executive orders are political ploys—no substitute for robust steps to provide real unemployment insurance, aid for states & localities, assistance to health care facilities, & others. Only Congress can take such steps & Republicans refuse to negotiate in good faith. LINK
Senator Udall (D-NM): The president’s announcement—made from his golf club while people across the country are hurting—is grossly insufficient and doesn’t come close to meeting the needs of struggling Americans. It’s unacceptable that @POTUS & @SenateGOP refuse to join with us to provide real relief.LINK
Senator Hirono (D-HI): Rather than encouraging Republicans to negotiate in good faith, @realDonaldTrump is indulging his savior complex with ill-conceived, probably illegal ideas — including a massive raid on Social Security. Step aside so negotiations can produce a result that actually helps people. LINK
Senator Kaine (D-VA): Par for the course from Chaos Don—orders of questionable legality, putting Medicare and Social Security at risk, generating uncertainty on future tax bills, and putting more fiscal pressure on states. What could be better right now than more confusion? washingtonpost.com/business/2020/… LINK
Senator Casey (D-PA): President Trump is sabotaging the postal service. He’s determined to prevent Americans from exercising their right to vote. This is the tactic of a desperate authoritarian who is willing to cling to power by any means necessary. LINK
Senator Casey (D-PA): These executive orders also won’t provide funding for critical priorities, like preventing layoffs of first responders. President Trump and Congressional Republicans should finally support passage of the HEROES Act in order to help all Americans during this pandemic. LINK
Senator Warren (D-MA): If Donald Trump cared about helping Americans, he would have demanded @senatemajldr McConnell start negotiating as soon as the House passed the HEROES act almost two months ago. These legally dubious actions aren’t real relief for states and families – they’re a cruel joke. LINK
Senator Peters (D-MI): We are facing the worst public health and economic crisis in generations and the President’s actions fall way short of what Michigan families and small businesses urgently need. My statement on the President’s Coronavirus executive actions LINK
Senator Durbin (D-IL): Unlike comprehensive legislation that could be passed by Congress, President Trump’s executive orders will not meet the needs of the American people or help solve this public health or economic crisis. LINK
Senator Harris (D-CA): The ship is sinking and Trump came with duct tape. Rather than do their jobs and help pass a comprehensive bill to help millions who are hurting, the White House and Senate Republicans are giving up and moving on. These are totally insufficient. Congress. Must. Act. LINK
Senator Murray (D-WA): The President’s order leaves out nearly 8 million borrowers with federal loans. It’s time for Republicans to get serious about relief for students, workers, & families. Congress must act to provide certainty to all federal loan borrowers. LINK
Senator Murray (D-WA): And one more thing. Democrats have legislation ready that would help schools educate their students in whatever way is safest. The President & Senator Rs are blocking it because they’d rather bully schools into ignoring public health guidance. LINK
Senator Wyden (D-OR): This scheme is a classic Trump con: play-acting at leadership while robbing families of the support they need. This “plan” fails to reinstate supercharged unemployment, and would throw already overburdened state programs into chaos, making it harder to get benefits out the door. LINK
Senator Wyden (D-OR): Donald Trump’s “plan” to navigate a deadly pandemic: 1. Slash workers’ incomes 2. Give families a fake tax cut they’ll have to repay after the election 3. Gut Americans’ hard-earned Social Security and Medicare benefits https://t.co/fSWhiX1oOv LINK
BACKGROUND From Sen. Schumer’s Office:
Message Guidance on President Trump’s Unworkable, Paltry, and Narrow Executive Order and Memoranda:
- Democrats are ready to work and come to an agreement that meets the needs of the American people, but President Trump’s announcement yesterday shows the administration still does not comprehend the seriousness or the urgency of the health and economic crises facing working families.
- In negotiations, Democrats offered to meet Republicans halfway to reach an agreement. The White House rejected this and decided on their go-it-alone approach.
- Instead of putting in the work to solve Americans’ problems, the President instead chose to stay on his luxury golf course and make a big show for the press, announcing an Executive Order and three Memoranda that are more aimed at distracting from his failure to contain the virus and lead during these crises than anything else.
- President Trump’s announcement is unworkable, paltry, and far too narrow to meet the needs of the American people. Here’s what it actually means for workers and families:
o Payroll Tax: The president did not cancel payroll taxes, he’s only putting off payments that will saddle families with large payments later on.
- In most cases, employers will continue to withhold the payroll tax, so they and their employees won’t be hit with a huge tax bill in December when it expires. This won’t be much help to workers or the economy.
- President Trump has said that if re-elected, he would eliminate the payroll tax, which will severely undermine the foundation of our critical Social Security and Medicare systems. Seniors who have paid into these programs for years, and who deserve to have their hard-earned benefits fully protected, should be very concerned.
o Unemployment Insurance: President Trump has proposed making a $200-$300 weekly cut to a program that has been overwhelmingly successful, keeping millions of working families out of poverty.
- The proposal is also completely unworkable for many states who may opt out because of the additional cost it puts on already struggling state budgets, particularly as Republicans refuse to provide state and local governments with the relief they need. And it was put together in such a sloppy fashion it will take weeks or even months for states to even implement a new program, meaning millions could lose everything before they see a check.
- Department of Labor findings show that for every four unemployed Americans there is only one available job opening. So if you’ve lost your job through no fault of your own, President Trump and the Republicans want to cut your benefits.
- Extending the enhanced unemployment benefits at the $600 level is critical for families to make rent, pay medical bills, and put food on the table. And, numerous economic studies have shown there is no evidence that individuals who received the extra $600 benefit were less likely to return to work.
o Evictions: President Trump‘s Memorandum fails to extend the eviction moratorium, let alone help for people who have fallen behind on their rent. There’s no plan to help people get out from under months of payments.
- The biggest problem with the Executive Orders is not what they do, but what has been left out.
o Trump’s proposal has left out money for testing, tracing, treatment. We know we’re not going to solve this problem economically until we solve the health problems. Despite more than 150,000 deaths, Trump and Senate Republicans are still unwilling to do what is necessary for a strong testing regime to prevent the spread of the virus.
o Schools: Trump’s announcement would extend the student loan forbearance that Democrats fought for in the Cares Act and that is set to expire at the end of September, but it completely leaves out aid to schools to reopen safely. If we want to get parents back to work, we must have a plan to keep schools from becoming COVID clusters.
o Help for state and local governments: President Trump can’t provide this much needed assistance by Executive Order. This money must be allocated by Congress and it’s imperative to get these funds to firefighters, sanitation workers, bus drivers, health care workers, and all the people who keep our local governments running. Without action, these people could lose their jobs.
o Elections: Democrats are asking for $3.6 billion to protect the wellspring of our democracy and ensure states can conduct elections. Between more people voting by mail, PPE for poll workers and reconfigured polling places to comply with social distancing, this money is essential to ensuring everyone can vote safely and securely.
o The Post Office: Republican actions are making it harder for people to get their medicines, checks, important letters, and absentee ballots. If both the application for mail ballots and the absentee ballots themselves are delayed too much, we won’t have a fair election. We need strong legislation to prevent that from happening.
o Food assistance: There’s no executive order to do what’s needed to make sure kids and others don’t go hungry.
- We are experiencing the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression and the worst health crisis since the Spanish Flu pandemic. Democrats want to pass real solutions that will actually help Americans, not just put on a show for the TV cameras.
- Since the House passed The Heroes Act twelve weeks ago, more than 3.5 million Americans have become infected and 70,000 have tragically died. The only solution to crush the virus and protect working families is to pass a comprehensive bill that is equal to the historic health and economic catastrophe facing our country.
- President Trump and Senate Republicans need to get serious about compromise and meet us halfway. The problems are too big to be solved by unworkable Executive Orders that leave out millions of Americans.
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