Watch the video on how a bill becomes a law, then explore the Govtrack link below.
About GovTrack.us: GovTrack.us tracks the United States Congress and helps Americans participate in their national legislature. They publish the status of federal legislation, information about your representative and senators in Congress including voting records, and original research on legislation and congressional oversight & investigations. They are one of the oldest government transparency websites in the world.
Corona Virus Stimulus Legislation in CongressFind an article or video about this pending legislation (some are linked within this website). Post a summary / reaction comment, and explore your classmates' posts too. Comment respectfully. Some ideas of topics to consider:
Who are the winners and the losers in this bill (who benefits?)?
How easy / difficult was compromise?
What were Democrat vs. Republican's goals / successes in this legislation?
How has the President been able to (or been prevented from) influencing the content of this legislation?
How are state governments affected? Did state governors have any influence on the content?
Do you think this stimulus is a good idea? (Your children / and maybe their children will eventually have to pay for this largest stimulus package in our nation's history).
$2 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Bill Presents A Reckoning For Libertarians
ReplyDeletehttps://www.npr.org/2020/03/28/822969308/-2-trillion-coronavirus-relief-bill-presents-a-reckoning-for-libertarians
This article by NPR talks about how the Coronavirus relief bill was passed through the Houses and to the President. The main point brought up is how one senator, Thomas Massie from Kentucky, faced backlash from all sides because he called for a recall of votes on the bill so that all the names of those supporting the bill were recorded. He said he wanted to do this because $2 trillion in aid would be "the biggest relief bill in the history of mankind", and it is important to hold a recorded vote. He faced backlash because for a recall of votes, all of the members of Senate and the House of Representatives would have to fly back to meet, which is already threatening because of the disease, and a recall would be delaying the aid from being distributed in a global crisis. Massie faced attacks from people from both the right and left, with Trump even tweeting out against him saying the senator should be ousted from the Republican Party.
After reading this article and the link to the bill summary, I definitely have a better understanding of what the bill is supposed to do. I think that some aid is necessary because of the many people staying home from work, services being limited, and stress on hospitals, but I can't even imagine what $2 trillion looks like so I'm reluctant to say that this stimulus is a good idea in regards for our economy. The article said that the senate passed the bill with a 96-0 vote, with President Trump signing it too, so I trust that they know what they are doing and realize how much money this will cost, but I'm also worried that this stimulus could be spontaneous and made in panic. In the end, it is better to overreact than to not do enough especially regarding a pandemic, but I worry about the lasting consequences that will come from a stimulus this large, and I wonder how the funds will be divided up when it comes to paying for the stimulus.
I was surprised by the 96-0 vote as well. I feel like the Republican Party tends to vote where it best benefits the economy, so I'm surprised there wasn't more debate about the large amount or discussion about economic repercussions. At the same time, I'm glad it was a unanimous decision because it brings a sense of comfort and trust that it is the best decision.
DeleteGood example of the political cost to a representative who fights it. Doesn't look good to refuse, or even slow down aid in a crisis that imperils literally everyone. Thanks for posting - where are the rest of you?
ReplyDeleteCongress Just Spent $2 Trillion on Coronavirus Relief. It’s Eyeing More.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/30/us/politics/coronavirus-stimulus-relief-congress.html
After three bills adding up to well over $2 trillion, officials are beginning to outline a fourth relief package. Nancy Pelosi is pushing for a fourth bill stating, “We have a list of issues that are immediate--that have a short fuse,” which is the best explanation for what appears to be in the upcoming proposed bill--a variety of issues. A major issue the article focuses on is the peak that is yet to come, and the thousands of deaths that the coronavirus is bound to take. The bill focuses on the future and recovery of the post-virus economy. However, one aspect of the bill focuses on building new infrastructure--a large economic investment. Other aspects of the bill include more aid to health workers, more equipment for hospitals, more aid directly to families, and more funds for local and state governments. This bill is supported by the Democratic Party, whereas Republican leaders as well as the Treasury secretary have said they are unsure that extra money will be necessary. The article mentions that the bill, in a way, is a second chance for negotiators to have their opinions voiced once again and accomplish what they failed to do in the previous bills.
After President Trump just passed such a large relief bill, I am definitely skeptical about a fourth bill. I can see the benefits and the need for extra equipment in hospitals and possibly more local government aid; however, the other aspects of the bill, especially infrastructure seems unreasonable. New infrastructure is definitely needed at some point, but in the midst of a global emergency, I feel like it can wait, and that money can temporarily be used for hospital equipment or other forms of aid. $2 trillion is a lot of money and our nation could suffer consequences of that in the future, so I don’t think it is a great idea to shovel out more money, especially before the results of the prior bills are yet to appear.
McConnell hits brakes on next economic stimulus package
ReplyDeletehttps://thehill.com/homenews/senate/490358-mcconnell-hits-brakes-on-next-economic-stimulus-package
On Tuesday of last week, Senator majority leader Mitch McConnell made a statement in regards to his nemesis, Nancy Pelosi, stating that a fourth stimulus package is unnecessary at the current moment. He says that we should ride out the current plan in place and not jump ahead of ourselves by spending more money. Additionally, he did target a major part of the Democratic parties plan of them putting progressive pieces into motion, by saying that he does not want to give another chance for the Dems to get non-connected administration. Through this whole coronavirus issue and plans being put in place to address it, the Democratic party has been attempting to install pieces and fragments of their overall agenda to create a safer world in their eyes. However, this has only held up progress and the movement forward in addressing the problem. The issue does stand though that the coronavirus is spreading and continuing to shut down many aspects of every day life. Trump has been advocating to the United States population that we need to try and avoid each other, as to cut off spreading of the disease. This does come with some ignorance however, as Trump in previous comments had played down the disease, these were in the early stages of the disease. Also, being his witty and non-PC self, Trump has gone after China for the poor concealment and bad communication among China and other world leaders.
In my opinion, I think that the Democrats are absolutely genius for managing to sneak parts of their progressive plan into the coronavirus stimulus package. There is little that the Republican party can do in this situation given a Republican is currently in office, and the way that the disease is handled, is a direct reflection of the political party itself. Also, this whole issue has raised more intention to the way that many of the most powerful communist nations run their country. In this instance, China had hard proof and evidence of an issue arising within their country, and this information was only administered by a brave doctor who publicly announced the issue. The doctor was jailed in killed. That is the true and scary reality that some people of the world live under. Many parts of the world are deserted of basic rights and liberties and every day is dangerous. China was trying to protect their image keeping a major flaw in their system tightly wrapped up, but over time truth always comes clean. This behavior is also being replicated by Russia, another communist nation, as Russia has seemingly gone unscathed by the coronavirus. This also happening when Russia and China´s borders are only 1,700 miles apart. Thats also not bringing up the fact of how big Russia is and how much business goes on there. Hopefully, this issue rolls over and becomes a manageable issue that future medicine will address.
Interesting truths to point out about the virus' handling in authoritarian countries. Free press and speech prevents that from being the case here, but our brand of democracy has its own problems. One, you pointed out how Dems. are using virus as chance to push progressive initiatives - in a way setting traps for Reps. who if they vote against aid appear insensitive toward the suffering when they might just be being fiscally conservative, even reasonalbe. Their voting record on this stuff will be very important this November! Also watch what is happening with the primary election - states postponing and in a couple cases cancelling their election days. Dems proposing mail in options that don't appear likely where Reps are in charge...
DeleteGood posts Trey and Sydney!
Studenka, Michael. “What The Coronavirus Aid, Relief And Economic Security Act Means For Employers Considering Mass Layoffs Or Furloughs.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 31 Mar. 2020, www.forbes.com/sites/michaelstudenka/2020/03/30/the-cares-act-and-its-impact-on-employers-considering-mass-layoffs-or-furloughs/#5b8410cc104f.
ReplyDeleteOn March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law “Phase Three” of the Congressional response to the COVID-19 health emergency. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or CARES Act. There were over 3.2 million unemployment claims filed last week. The CARES Act provides additional financial support to employees unable to work because of the COVID-19 crisis. The COVID-19 crisis is also causing many people to get laid off from work. The CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) provides a new loan option for businesses that do not have more than 500 employees. PPP loans are intended to help small businesses maintain a cash flow for eight weeks by providing 100-percent federally-guaranteed loans that can be used to cover employment and other costs, such as payroll and salaries.
This new bill that is being signed into law is helping many people. It is a good bill that will be benefiting people right now, but is going to cause a major price for future generations to pay back. Three trillion dollars is not a small number for a price to be spent on. The generations to come will have to pay back this money that the government has spent. This will not only affect our parents, but it will affect me and the generation after. In conclusion, this bill will be some immediate help for people struggling and hopefully will help them with a way to make money, but the consequence will cause major debt in the future.