[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 144 (Wednesday, August 12, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5391-S5392]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              CORONAVIRUS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, yesterday, I spoke about the disconnect 
between the discourse here in Washington and the pain and uncertainty 
that American families are feeling all across our country.
  I spoke about the human toll of the Democrats' choice to play 
politics with billions and billions of aid and block it all over non-
COVID-related wish list items.
  It has been clear for some weeks that the Speaker of the House and 
the Senate Democratic leader are treating this crisis like an ordinary 
political game.
  The New York Times says Speaker Pelosi is ``playing hardball.'' 
POLITICO says she is ``taking a huge risk . . . as she remains almost 
entirely unyielding in her demands.''
  More than 160,000 Americans have been killed by the worst infectious 
disease outbreak in more than a century. More than 16 million Americans 
are out of work. An entire school year for our kids is in limbo, but 
Democrats are playing political games like this were some run-of-the-
mill typical negotiation.
  Speaker Pelosi's own Democratic House Members call her proposal 
``Washington gamesmanship,'' ``partisan gamesmanship,'' and ``playing 
politics.'' Those are House Democrats I am quoting on the House 
Democratic bill.
  Yesterday, literally a few minutes after I said on the floor that 
Democrats should stop treating this crisis like a game, the Democratic 
leader came to the floor to talk about who ``ran down the clock,'' who 
``tossed up an air ball,'' and who ``subbed themselves out of the 
game.''
  So, look, the Democrats aren't taking this as a serious issue. They 
aren't acting like this is serious, and the American people are hurting 
in the meantime.
  Let's get outside the beltway and listen to how this crisis has 
impacted real American families and how the Democrats' stonewalling 
continues to hurt them.
  Since we passed the CARES Act, I have been visiting healthcare 
facilities in my home State of Kentucky--places like St. Claire's 
Healthcare in Morehead and King's Daughters Medical

[[Page S5392]]

Center in Ashland--always wearing a mask and social distancing, of 
course.
  I have thanked the frontline workers and heard how the Senate's last 
rescue package has helped them save lives and stay safer themselves 
while doing it. That is because the CARES Act provided $1.3 billion for 
Kentucky healthcare providers alone, on top of more than $120 million 
we had already sent for testing.
  But Kentucky's incredible nurses, doctors, and hospitals are not 
finished fighting the battle on behalf of their communities, and 
Congress must not be finished helping them do it. That is why Senate 
Republicans proposed major new investments in health providers.
  We want to send tens of billions more to expand testing, to reimburse 
healthcare facilities for unplanned pandemic expenses, to speed the 
development and rapid distribution of COVID-19 treatments, and to find 
a vaccine to finish this fight once and for all.
  That is what Republicans would like to do, but Democrats have about 
blocked all of it over non-COVID-related, liberal demands.
  Let's talk about the PPP--the historic program from Chairman Collins 
and Chairman Rubio that has kept Main Street alive and kept millions of 
Americans from losing their jobs.
  This program has been transformational for Kentucky. Our small 
businesses and their workers have received more than $5 billion of 
payroll support. As the director of the Dare to Care Food Bank in 
Louisville told me recently, PPP funding is what has allowed his 
facility to keep its entire workforce--precisely when our community 
needs were the greatest.
  And I heard from the director of a Kentucky museum that ``[t]he PPP 
program was the one hope that we had to keep our business alive.''
  But these small businesses and nonprofits are now nearing the end of 
that help. The PPP had to close its doors last Saturday for new 
applications, and many employers are exhausting the money they had 
already received. Our country is approaching another small business 
tipping point, and workers could begin getting pink slips instead of 
paychecks.
  That is why Senate Republicans wrote up plans for another whole round 
of PPP--a full second draw for the hardest hit businesses. House 
Democrats left this out of their bill entirely and essentially turned 
their backs on those benefiting from PPP. But Republicans want to keep 
helping Main Street workers.
  One woman-owned small business in Northern Kentucky shared:

       We are grateful for the $465,000 in the PPP. [But] we have 
     used all of it for payroll and employee related costs . . . 
     18 weeks of expenses. We are seeking [more] financial help to 
     keep our most treasured asset, our people, employed.

  And the president of an inspection company in Louisville says this:

       You have no idea how much this second draw on PPP will help 
     us. We were actually in the process of figuring out how we 
     were going to make it through to our fall work season. . . . 
     If we get this, we could make it into our season with no 
     layoffs.

  Republicans want to get more aid to these workers, but Senate 
Democrats have blocked every bit of it over non-COVID-related liberal 
demands.
  Let's talk about our university presidents who are worried about 
testing and funding in the fall. Our K-12 school boards and 
superintendents want legal protections so they can reopen.
  So Republicans proposed billions for education--actually, even more 
than House Democrats in their bill. But now Democrats are blocking it 
all over unrelated, liberal demands.
  Republicans want another round of direct checks--direct checks to 
households across Kentucky and across America.
  I just heard from one constituent who said:

       With my first one, I was able to get an eye exam and new 
     glasses. . . . I appreciate all you can do. Some of us are 
     hurting and need help.

  I want to put more cash in her pocket right now, but Democrats are 
blocking every penny over unrelated, liberal demands.
  So do you see the pattern? Kentuckians need more help; Americans need 
more help. The American people are not done fighting this virus, and 
Republicans are not done crafting policies to help them. But the 
difference between now and March is that Democrats seem to be finished 
being reasonable.
  The Speaker of the House and the Senate Democratic leader have cut 
all their colleagues--all of them, all of their committees--out of 
negotiations. They are doing this alone, and they have declared that 
none of the priorities I have named will see a single dime unless--the 
two of them have declared none of the priorities I have named will see 
a single dime unless millionaires in Brooklyn and San Francisco get a 
massive tax cut, States get a trillion-dollar slush fund to cover 
budget problems long before the pandemic, and we tax essential workers 
to pay unemployed people a higher salary to stay home.
  Republicans wanted to reach agreement on all these issues where we 
could find common ground and fight over the last few issues later. But 
the Speaker and the Democratic leader say nothing can move unless every 
one of these unrelated, far-left items tags along.
  These two individuals are letting the wish lists of wealthy coastal 
elites stand between every working family in America and the additional 
help they deserve.
  So maybe in a few moments the Democratic leader or somebody on the 
other side will try again to explain how this is all some big political 
game.
  Well, Kentuckians know differently. They need results. All of our 
States need results. And Republicans will fight until we actually get 
an outcome

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