[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 159 (Tuesday, September 15, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5584-S5588]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              CORONAVIRUS

  Mr. President, to date, we have lost nearly 200,000 Americans to the 
coronavirus, and we are quickly approaching 7 million cases in the 
United States.
  This virus has changed life as we know it, and Americans are in need 
of help from Congress. However, despite

[[Page S5585]]

the urgent needs of families, businesses, workers, and unemployed 
Americans across the country, Senate Republicans have dragged their 
feet and offered up only a few weak measures that barely address the 
needs of the Nation.
  The majority leader knows what needs to be done. The playbook is 
right in front of us. We did it back in March with the CARES Act, which 
passed 96-0.
  To negotiate a real package with real solutions for the American 
people, he needs to show up at the negotiating table and give up these 
rogue attempts to pass empty, half-hearted measures.
  In the meantime, more data is coming in every day, giving us a 
clearer picture of just how devastating this pandemic has been to so 
many Americans. A new report from the Robert John Wood Foundation found 
some troubling outcomes that COVID has had on Chicago residents. Half 
of Chicago households reported facing serious financial problems during 
the pandemic and troubles caring for children, with 35 percent 
reporting that they used up all or most of their savings.
  As we know, the pandemic has disproportionately affected our minority 
communities, with nearly 70 percent of Black and 63 percent of Latinx 
households in Chicago reported having serious financial problems. And I 
am sad to say that this study found half of Chicago households report 
having lost their jobs, been furloughed, or seen reductions in wages or 
work hours since the start of the pandemic.
  We all know how important an internet connection is during this 
pandemic. According to the report, 40 percent of Chicago households are 
either struggling with their internet connection or lack access to 
high-speed internet in their home needed to complete schoolwork or 
their jobs.
  While these statistics reflect the reality of many in Chicago, there 
is little doubt that this is also the story in so many cities and 
States across the Nation. This is why we need a substantial federal 
response. We need to do what is necessary to help struggling families, 
businesses, cities, and States get back on their feet.
  Last week, Senate Republicans proposed another inadequate, partisan 
coronavirus response bill that failed to prioritize the needs of 
struggling Americans. The bill failed to provide another round of 
economic impact payments for families or hazard pay for essential 
workers.
  It failed to provide relief to States and local governments so they 
can continue to pay teachers, EMTs, and firefighters. And it failed to 
provide any housing assistance or nutrition assistance so struggling 
families can keep a roof over their heads and food on the table.
  It has been 4 months since the House passed the HEROES Act, and week 
after week Senate Republicans refuse to make a good faith, bipartisan 
effort to pass a relief measure that meets the severity of this crisis. 
History will judge us on how we responded to the worst pandemic in a 
century and the deepest recession in 75 years. In response to this 
crisis, did we help prevent millions from slipping into poverty through 
another round of economic impact payments and extending enhanced 
unemployment benefits? Did we give schools and teachers the appropriate 
resources so they can help our children learn in a safe environment?
  What steps did we take to preserve one of our country's greatest 
assets: the health and safety of our workforce? Did we throw caution to 
the wind by prematurely reopening simply because it's an election year?
  Our country needs help, and the proposal that we voted on last week 
offered little help to struggling Americans.
  Our Nation is suffering right now, and there is a long road to 
recovery ahead of us. Unfortunately, Leader McConnell wasted precious 
time by pitching a half-baked proposal that prioritized the needs of 
corporations over the needs of American families.
  Let's pass a bill that matches the gravity of this crisis, and let's 
pass it now.
  I will close with a brief comment on substance. On March 26 we 
shocked America in the Senate. I know it. I went home, and they told me 
so. Do you know how we shocked them? By a vote of 96 to 0, we passed 
the CARES Act--96 to 0--with not a single dissenting vote in the 
Senate--$3 trillion to address our economic problems and the 
coronavirus epidemic we were facing. We did it on March 26--yes, in 
this calendar year--and we did it knowing that the measures we were 
taking had a life expectancy of just a few months because we thought 
that would be the end of our challenge. It is not.
  The challenges that we faced in passing the CARES Act in March still 
are challenges America faces. When it comes to COVID-19, the numbers 
are sobering. The infection rate of COVID-19 in the United States is 
double the infection rate of the same virus in Canada--Canada. How can 
the United States be in a position where twice as many Americans are 
getting sick as those living just on the other side of the border?
  When you look at the overall numbers, you have to shake your head. We 
have 4\1/2\ percent of the world's population living in the United 
States--4\1/2\ percent--and over 20 percent of the COVID-19 deaths in 
the world--4\1/2\ percent and 20 percent. What is going on here?
  In this Nation, this great Nation, with all of its wealth and all of 
its resources and all of its talent and all of its great hospitals and 
doctors and pharmaceutical companies, we have a rate of COVID-19 deaths 
that is just indefensible.
  So I would say to my colleagues: When Senator McConnell came to the 
floor and said ``Here is our package; take it or leave it,'' that is 
not how this can possibly end. That is not the way the debate ended on 
March 26. It ended when Senator McConnell and his House Republican 
counterpart, Congressman McCarthy, met with Speaker Pelosi, Leader 
Schumer, and Treasury Secretary Mnuchin in a room and worked it out. 
That is what it takes.
  We need to return to that now and get it done before we leave for any 
reason--election or whatever it may be. There is no excuse. There are 
too many unemployed people desperate to get by. There are too many 
businesses desperate to survive. There are too many tests that we 
cannot take in America because we haven't invested in the resources. 
There are too many school districts telling me: Senator, reopening 
safely for these kids and teachers is going to take some money. Can you 
help?
  There is an election coming up November 3, where election 
authorities--because people want to vote in the safety of their homes--
will receive a dramatic increase in paper ballots cast, and they need a 
helping hand in processing them in an orderly, honest way.
  The demands are out there. State and local governments are in 
trouble. Small towns in Southern Illinois--I speak to their mayors, and 
I hear the same things that I hear from the mayor of Chicago: We have 
had a downturn in revenues; we are going to have to lay off policemen 
and firefighters and healthcare workers if you don't give us a helping 
hand.
  We cannot walk away from this. Senator McConnell can't take the 
position of ``my way or the highway.'' We have to work on a bipartisan 
basis to negotiate an answer to this, and I hope we do soon.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts.
  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to be able to 
address the Senate for 10 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered
  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. President, we are fast approaching nearly 200,000 
deaths from the coronavirus. But the moral and physical injury done to 
our country during the pandemic will never be contained in just one 
number. As that number continues to climb, so too do the frustration 
and the pain and the outrage of the American people.
  We know that Donald Trump recognized the threat of the coronavirus 
and deliberately downplayed it for his own political gain. He is in 
large part responsible for these deaths.
  We now have 31 million workers who have either received or applied 
for unemployment benefits. Since March 15, Massachusetts alone has seen 
more than 2 million claims to our unemployment programs. In 
Massachusetts, we have the highest unemployment rate in the United 
States.

[[Page S5586]]

  Families across the country are facing devastating choices. Cities 
and towns are struggling to keep programs running and employees at 
work. We know the Republicans recognize these threats, and they are 
choosing to ignore them. They are, in part, responsible for the 
suffering.
  After 4 months of callous calculations, when they chose to respond, 
the Republicans put out on the floor a coronavirus package that was 
insulting to Americans who have been awaiting relief. The extent of the 
misery facing our families is unimaginable. Yet Republicans and Leader 
McConnell responded by designing a bill so intentionally weak and 
insufficient that it was destined to fail.
  It is all just a game to the Republican Party, but for Americans, 
this economic and public health crisis is a matter of life and death. 
We need a robust, comprehensive response right now that matches the 
scale of this crisis, and we have an opportunity to deliver some real 
justice to working Americans and their families.
  First, we need to give Americans a monthly cash payment of $2,000 so 
that they have the funding to able to pay their bills. A single check 
is not sufficient for households. Families need more than just one 
payment.
  Providing recurring monthly payments is the most direct and efficient 
mechanism for delivering economic relief to those most vulnerable, for 
lower income families, immigrant families, and our gig and service 
workers.
  I see these families suffering today. They are the same kinds of 
working families I grew up with in Malden. I know that $2,000 each 
month would mean the world to them--so that they can sleep at night; 
they can pay the rent; they can pay the electricity bill; they can buy 
the medications they need.
  A monthly payment is the kind of big policy that provides relief on 
the scale that is needed. Our government needs to tell our families: We 
are here for you. We will not let you down during this crisis.
  Second, we need at least $4 billion for my E-rate Program to connect 
every student to the internet at home. The pandemic has shown a bright 
light on the homework gap being experienced by the 16 million students 
in this country who do not have internet access at home and are unable 
to complete their homework. This is unconscionable and a threat to our 
country's future.
  We cannot allow this homework gap to become a larger learning gap, 
which ultimately is going to become an opportunity gap for these young 
people. Research shows that the homework gap affects students in both 
rural and urban areas and disproportionately affects lower income 
students and students of color. Trump and the Republicans are blocking 
this investment in education, but we can't let them. We will not leave 
these students behind.
  Third, we need to extend unemployment insurance, the weekly $600 
benefit, through January of 2021. This is not just a line in the 
budget; it is a lifeline for workers who cannot go to work through no 
fault of their own. This crisis will be solved only by investing in 
workers. We cannot simply cut them off when we know harder days lie 
ahead for those workers in our country
  Fourth, we must continue a national evictions moratorium and provide 
$100 billion in emergency rental assistance. No one should have to 
suffer the indignity of being escorted out of their home by the police. 
A country that allows evictions during a pandemic--because of a 
pandemic--has failed its people.
  The same goes for electricity and energy shutoffs. We need a national 
moratorium that keeps the lights on, ensures drinking water, ensures 
that wastewater services aren't disconnected or interrupted during the 
emergency period due to nonpayment. We cannot cast families into the 
dark as they are struggling to stay afloat.
  It is wrong to allow a pandemic that has not been created by these 
families to result in catastrophic conditions that will look like the 
Great Depression in terms of their impact on families in the same way 
that it impacted my family during the Great Depression. We owe these 
people more. They have worked hard. They have worked constantly 
throughout their lives. Now, through no fault of their own, the 
pandemic has hit them, and they are unemployed.
  Finally, we need $1 trillion in funding for State and local 
governments so that our teachers, nurses, postal workers, and other 
dedicated public servants are not laid off--the essential workers who 
drive the buses, pick up the garbage, fight the deadliest of fires, 
educate our young people. Despite providing the services we rely upon 
every day--including every single one of us in this Chamber--our 
municipalities are aren't getting any money because Republicans refuse 
to provide it. State and local governments have been pushed to the 
brink to support their residents and are in desperate need of relief.
  To my Republican colleagues I say that this funding isn't blue or 
red; it is green. And all of our mayors and Governors and city 
councilors--whether Republican or Democrat--need that money right now.
  I have been traveling around my home State of Massachusetts talking 
to families. They tell me the same thing: They want a livable future 
for their children. That means they need the government to do its job 
effectively in managing this COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of making 
excuses, they need a government that works on solutions, even if the 
problems are unprecedented, and they want that government to recognize 
the rights and dignity of everyone.
  Our families want something so basic and so simple, they almost 
shouldn't have to say it: They want their children to dream about the 
future instead of fearing about the future.
  They need political leadership from us right now--not political 
games, not the political calculation of just 20 Members of the Senate 
Republican caucus.
  To my colleagues I say that the gravity of this crisis requires us to 
respond right now. We know we have a President in the White House who 
is irresponsible. The President knew. It turns out he knew the virus 
was deadly. He knew it as well as we knew it, but he lied to us. He 
told us it would magically disappear. He said it was no worse than the 
flu while on tape we hear him say that it is lethal. On February 10, he 
said: You know, a lot of people think it goes away in April with the 
heat, when the heat comes in. That is what the President said in 
February about the coronavirus.
  He also tells us that climate change is a myth. He tells us that our 
planet is not in grave danger. He makes fun of the science of climate 
change the way he makes fun of wearing a mask.
  Now the ``Denier in Chief'' says when it gets cooler it will go away, 
that the fires in the west coast will just go away. His answer to 
coronavirus is that when it gets warmer, it will go away. When he deals 
with the science of climate change, he says: When it gets cooler, the 
fires will go away.
  The west coast of the United States is on fire, and 10 percent of 
Oregon is under evacuation order. A warning--that is half a million 
people. We have dozens of wildfires burning right now in California, 
including the largest in the history of that State. It has blotted out 
the sun for hundreds and hundreds of miles. The Southwest is shrouded 
in a horrifying, constant twilight.
  We can keep looking at these things in isolation, as if somehow or 
other they are not connected. Each fiery conflagration, each hurricane, 
each devastating flood, each ungodly windstorm that wipes out a whole 
year of crops--we can say they have nothing to do with each other or we 
can look at the truth and listen to the science and say enough is 
enough.
  We can lie to ourselves and say, as Trump does, that one day these 
things will just ``magically disappear,'' depending upon whether the 
heat or cooling will solve the problem. But we all know better. We know 
that unless we act now, the fires will happen annually and burn hotter 
and larger each summer, each fall in our country. We know that the 
hurricanes will get worse and more frequent. Two made landfall at once 
this year. We know that they will disrupt and destroy the economies of 
the gulf and the eastern seaboard.
  How many times can we ask our people to rebuild? We know that 
midwestern floods will grow each year, drowning out a whole way of life 
and making refugees of our farmers. We know that the windstorms like 
those this year will continue to destroy

[[Page S5587]]

crops. Iowa lost 43 percent of its corn and soybeans this year.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has used his 10 minutes.
  Mr. MARKEY. No, it will not magically disappear. We need a Green New 
Deal. We need a solution that matches the magnitude of the problem.
  I yield back to the Presiding Officer. I appreciate his indulgence.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed 
to complete my remarks before the lunch recess.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, let me say that I join my friend from 
Massachusetts in a desire to see us take up and pass another COVID-19 
relief bill. I would say that so far, the House of Representatives has 
taken a completely unrealistic approach, including many non-COVID-19 
relief provisions in the bill, including tax cuts for millionaires and 
billionaires. They literally include, in the COVID-19 bill they call 
the Heroes Act, a tax cut by removing the cap on deductibility on State 
and local taxes on your Federal income tax.
  When we did that in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, we felt it was 
improper to force States like the Presiding Officer's and mine to 
subsidize the irresponsible spending practices in major cities like New 
York and San Francisco.
  If our Democratic friends are indeed serious about wanting to get a 
deal, we are open, certainly, to negotiating a deal, just as we did the 
first four bills that we passed, especially by unanimous vote.
  It seems the closer we get to the election, which is now 49 days out, 
that the old partisan dysfunction begins to creep back in and you hear 
speeches like the Senator from Massachusetts just gave, advocating 
things like the Green New Deal as a solution to all the world's 
problems. It is just completely pie in the sky and a pipedream that is 
obviously not going anywhere.
  That doesn't stop our friends across the aisle blaming this side of 
the aisle or the President for everything that happens in the world, 
including hurricanes and forest fires, which are largely as a result of 
failing to undertake proper forest management that we know can prevent 
fires. They blame it on climate change. It is an easy argument claiming 
science is on their side.
  We need to be good stewards about our environment, no doubt about it. 
I have no doubt the climate is changing and humans contribute to that, 
but there are smarter and better ways for us to approach it other than 
eliminating jobs and burdening people on fixed incomes with higher 
electricity and energy costs and just embracing an ideological 
solution, which is no solution at all and will create more problems 
than it solves.
  I would just say, finally, on this point, that we know that the 
guidance from the Centers for Disease Control has evolved over time. I 
went back and checked. My friend in Massachusetts says the President 
did this; he did that; he said this; he didn't do this. I remember 
going back and looking at the Centers for Disease Control guidance 
before April. They said masks were ineffective; they didn't do 
anything. They came back after some additional investigation and 
research and said: Well, they can help. That is why we are all wearing 
masks, especially when we can't socially distance.
  Looking at this pandemic now in September as opposed to the way it 
looked in March, we have learned a lot, thank goodness. Our medical 
professionals have saved a lot of lives. We learned how to mitigate the 
risks. We learned how to live with the virus at the same time we are 
investing heavily in therapies and a vaccine, which can't come soon 
enough.
  Senate Republicans have made attempt after attempt to deliver another 
round of coronavirus relief to the American people. In July, we 
proposed the HEALS Act, which was a starting point for negotiations. We 
realized this wasn't the end-all and be-all any more than the 
Democrats' Heroes Act, this $3 trillion hodgepodge of an ideological 
wish list that we knew wasn't going to pass, but we knew we needed to 
start somewhere.
  Speaker Pelosi didn't help when she quickly disparaged our starting 
proposal as ``pathetic.'' And, of course, Senator Schumer, the minority 
leader in the Senate, called it ``unworkable.'' I guess they thought 
they finished their job, and they dismissed it outright and did nothing 
to negotiate in good faith toward a resolution. They simply have no 
interest in amending the bill or trying to find a common ground. They 
just stiff-armed it.
  This August, when we attempted to narrow the scope of the negotiation 
to the most urgent matters--things like continuing Federal unemployment 
benefits, which expired at the end of July--this time our Democratic 
colleagues rejected what they called a ``piecemeal'' approach. Never 
mind the fact that the House returned to Washington to pass a bill only 
to help the Postal Service, which was actually bipartisan. Apparently, 
that kind of piecemeal is acceptable as long as it is a Democratic-
sponsored and authored bill.
  That brings us to September. Last week, we gave it another shot. The 
majority leader brought the bill to the floor to address some of the 
most pressing challenges facing the American people: funding schools, 
vaccine research, more testing, unemployment benefits, helping small 
businesses, again, through the extension of the Paycheck Protection 
Program--all of which should be and I believe, in truth, are bipartisan 
goals.
  Unfortunately, our Democratic colleagues couldn't resist that old 
temptation of partisan dysfunction this close to the election. They 
pulled out the same playbook they used all summer. Once again, they 
refused to engage in any meaningful negotiations. They resorted to 
name-calling and blocked the bill from even being debated. You can't 
pass a bill unless you are willing to start considering it, but they 
weren't willing to even do that.
  Here we are battling a pandemic, which has claimed more than 190,000 
Americans, and Democrats blocked every attempt to pass a piece of 
legislation since March. Rather than trying to negotiate or amend these 
bills or reach a bipartisan compromise, they seem to be content with 
airing their grievances at press conferences.
  I agree with one thing the Senator from Massachusetts said: There are 
people who are hurting and need help. We should not take some perverse 
delight in exacerbating that pain or noting that pain and being 
unwilling to do anything to relieve it.
  This may be a political game for some of our colleagues. It may be a 
way to try to score points against the President or try to gain 
advantage in the runup to the election on November 3, but I assure you, 
it is not an honest attempt to try to solve a problem; it is not a 
genuine attempt to try to provide relief to the American people who are 
hurting; and it is not moving us any closer to defeating this virus 
once and for all.
  In the bills we passed so far--again, on a bipartisan basis, largely 
unanimously--we provided unprecedented support for American families, 
including direct payments, bolstered unemployment benefits, and 
provided the ability to defer student loan payments. We sent help to 
farmers, ranchers, and producers. We helped our schools prepare for the 
new school year and gave small businesses and their employees the 
resources to stay afloat. We have provided stability for families and 
communities across Texas and across the Nation
  More help is needed, especially to bolster our response to the virus 
itself. We know we are in a global race to develop a vaccine and 
treatment. Our brightest scientific minds are working 24/7 to deliver 
those lifesaving drugs to the world as quickly as we can, safely and 
effectively, but they need more money to succeed.
  At the same time, our communities are trying to test as many people 
as they can, whether it is people attending college football games or 
surveillance testing in communities or at colleges or grade schools. 
Our constituents don't care about our partisan disagreements. They just 
want us to do everything we can to help them and to help us defeat this 
virus.
  During the month of August, I was able to travel around the State and 
to listen to feedback from my constituents on how the funding we 
provided so far has aided in the fight against COVID-19. Congress has 
provided more than $234 billion to support our

[[Page S5588]]

healthcare response. That includes $10 billion for research and 
development of a vaccine through Operation Warp Speed, $16 billion for 
personal protective equipment, $26 billion for testing, and, of course, 
the $173 billion Provider Relief Fund to help our hospitals.
  More than 23,000 hospitals and healthcare providers in my State alone 
have received more than $5.1 billion in Federal funding, allowing them 
to procure critical resources like masks and gloves and to cover 
mounting costs due to the deferral of elective procedures.
  In August, I had a chance to personally thank some of the healthcare 
workers in Abilene, Waco, Wichita Falls, Amarillo, Lubbock, and Corpus 
Christi. I also had lunch and visited with the children of healthcare 
workers in the Rio Grande Valley who, even at such a young age, are 
amazed by the heroic work of their parents.
  As our war against this virus carries on, we need to ensure that our 
frontline workers and healthcare providers have the resources they need 
to sustain this fight.
  I also visited with the Family Health Center in Waco, which is 1 of 
73 federally qualified health centers in Texas operating more than 500 
sites. This is really a critical part of our healthcare safety net in 
my State and across the Nation.
  I have always been a strong supporter of our community health centers 
and cofounded the Senate Community Health Centers Caucus several years 
ago. As I said, these facilities make quality healthcare a reality for 
so many Texans, whether they have Medicare, Medicaid, private 
insurance, or no insurance. Texans can go to these health centers and 
receive the care they need when they need it.
  The particular Family Health Center I visited in Waco was founded 
more than 50 years ago to address a shortage of doctors and primary 
care access for low-income patients and has since grown to 15 clinics 
across McLennan County, which provide not only primary and preventive 
care but dental and behavioral healthcare too.
  As Family Health Center CEO, Dr. Jackson Griggs, said community-
oriented primary care is difficult in any era, and it has been uniquely 
challenging during COVID-19. Unexpected operating costs and lost 
revenue created serious financial hardship, but because of the $3 
million in the CARES Act and other Federal funding they got, they have 
continued to provide quality healthcare during this time of critical 
need. Because of Federal funding, they have been able to test every 
person who comes in with symptoms. They received the equipment, the 
kits, the mobile computer systems, tents, and the air-conditioning 
units that allows staff to test patients outdoors, even during a hot 
Texas summer.
  During our visit, Dr. Griggs told me they conducted more than 7,400 
tests, with over 1,500 patients testing positive. Of those, 53 percent 
were uninsured. Without legislation passed by Congress, who knows what 
these patients would have been able to afford or even get access to a 
COVID-19 test. This funding has also provided more than 187,000 pieces 
of PPE to the Family Health Center's doctors, nurses, dentists, social 
workers, and staff who are trying to stay safe and healthy while they 
continue to care for their patients.
  On top of that, the funds have provided the information technology 
infrastructure to get telehealth services started in record time and 
nearly 11,000 hours of paid leave for healthcare workers and other 
staff members who become ill or need to quarantine because of the 
virus.
  The legislation we passed has also helped community health centers, 
hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and healthcare facilities throughout 
the State continue to serve their communities.
  As we keep working to deliver the assistance for the American people, 
we need to continue to support our healthcare response. This means 
ensuring that the providers continue to have the resources needed to 
operate throughout this crisis. It means more resources for testing and 
contact tracing to stop the spread. It means an even greater investment 
in the race to discover a vaccine and treatment so we can finally bring 
this crisis to an end. It means continuing to provide healthcare 
coverage for those who are laid off or furloughed or lost employer 
coverage.
  I recently introduced a bill with my friend Senator McSally from 
Arizona to provide some degree of certainty for folks who found 
themselves without a job or health coverage through no fault of their 
own. It is called the Continuous Health Coverage for Workers Act, which 
would provide premium assistance for COBRA coverage during the rest of 
the year. As the coronavirus has wreaked havoc on our job market, it 
has filled countless Texans' lives with uncertainty. By passing this 
legislation as part of the next relief bill, we can ensure that those 
who previously maintained their health coverage through their employer 
can continue to do so through the end of the year.
  Let me just say in conclusion that COVID-19 is not a partisan issue. 
It hasn't been up until this point. Unfortunately, the wheels came off, 
at least for the time being. We need to put those wheels back on the 
car. We are all on the same team fighting a common enemy. I hope we can 
rediscover the sense of bipartisanship and common purpose that helped 
us pass four bills up through and including March.
  During August, I was able to spend time speaking with countless of my 
constituents about the bills we had passed and discussing what more was 
needed. In addition to hearing from the healthcare workers and 
providers who had been on the frontlines, I also joined students and 
teachers for socially distanced conversations about the challenges that 
had been brought on by the start of the new school year. I held a video 
call with restaurant owners about the ongoing impact of the pandemic on 
their businesses. On telephone townhalls, I heard from constituents 
about their struggles to make ends meet after they lost their jobs and 
then lost the extra $600 a week in Federal unemployment benefits, which 
lapsed because our colleagues wouldn't allow us to take up and 
consider, at some level, a continuation of those enhanced benefits.
  As our Democratic colleagues have continued to play games, these are 
the folks who have been hurt, and I am sure there are similar 
situations in each of their States. For these Texans whom I have 
described, COVID-19 isn't about political points or sound bites--it is 
about their health, their families' safety, and their livelihoods.
  While it seems like some have yielded to the temptation of using this 
pandemic for political gain, I am committed to continuing to work with 
all of our colleagues who are willing to ensure that we don't lose any 
of the ground we have gained in the war against COVID-19. We are 
literally up against the clock, and enough time has been wasted on 
name-calling, finger-pointing, and political posturing. It is time for 
the games to end so that we can finally provide our constituents, 
including our frontline heroes, with the resources they need in order 
to sustain and win this fight.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________