In Washington DC, a battle over the future of unemployment benefits continues. While Democrats want the existing $600 extra per week to continue through January, Republicans have had enough of spending money on the poorest taxpayers. As such, Senate Republicans have proposed a cut to only a third of those benefits, an extra $200 per week for people on unemployment.
These discussions come at a critical time for the US. The COVID-19 pandemic has wrought havoc all over the US. Over 140,000 people have died, and millions have been sickened by the disease.
What’s more, some businesses have been forced to close their doors. Many won’t be reopening, even after the pandemic ends. This has led to an unemployment crisis, which the soon-expiring CARES Act sought to address with the $600 per week.
Republicans, despite their preference to pass tax cuts for the wealthy, don’t care for social programs that help the poor. This is illustrated whenever Democrats suggest raising the minimum wage or extending welfare benefits. The pandemic has pushed Republicans to the brink of their patience for social spending; the $1,200 direct payments sent out in April were even too rich for some Republicans’ blood.
Now, Senate Republicans, led by Mitch McConnell, have drawn a line in the sand over unemployment benefits. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer expressed his frustration with the situation Monday morning. “We have unemployment running out, we have renter protection running out, we have state and local governments going into a new month and won’t have the money and will lay off thousands and thousands of people.
“We’re at all these cliffs and we still at this very moment don’t have a plan from the Republicans. We want to sit down and negotiate. But you can’t negotiate with a ghost.”
Early in the pandemic, there was optimism that the US could respond well to the public health crisis. Many experts predicted that by this time, the disease would likely be under control. However, due to a combination of factors, this is not the case. Some areas that had once beaten the virus back are now seeing their case numbers surge again.
Even as millions of Americans are stuck at home, ordering food for home delivery, parts of the country are trying to press forward like nothing is wrong. This has led to a tense ideological showdown between some who feel the virus is being blown out of proportion, and others who think it’s not being taken seriously enough.
