Lawmakers waited with the thoughts on the bill. Weighed in. I would hope this week the senate would be busy providing more coronavirus a period chairman and ranking members should be working overtime across the aisle to finalize another major pandemic relief package for the American People. After all, theres so many important ways in which American Families need help and which democrats say they see that seg priorities, just like republicans do. And priorities like continue oft federal addon to unemployment insurance, more tools for schools to safely reopen, more access to testing and diagnostics. More resources to develop vaccines and treatments, a new round of checks to put cash in families hands, asap. Another round of thepa future successful paycheck protection program, that Small Businesses have relied on which is left out of the democratics proposal. All of these things and many more were in Senate Republicans trillion dollar proposal for another coronavirus rescue package focused on kids, jobs, healthcare, and Legal Protections to help our country reopen. So i had hoped the city would be spending this week turning a major agreement into law. But sadly for the country, soundly for struggling americans, the speaker of the house and the Senate Democratic leader the side we would not deliver any of that, none of it. For weeks Speaker Pelosi and democratic leader in the senate stalled and stalled negotiations with the administrations team. For weeks, weeks they held up important aid over noncovid related demands. They stay true to the comments from the very early on in the pandemic. This is the way to look at it. They saw this pandemic as quote, a tremendous opportunity to structure things to fit our vision here that was the House Democratic whip. Speaker pelosi herself put it this way. This is a an opportunity, every crisis is. Working families call this pandemic a crisis. They call it a nightmare. But leading democrats call it an opportunity. Just listen to some of their demands. These of the democrats demands that should between all of this that stood between all of us helping the americans. Democrats say no, it gets another dime of relief and the state and local governments get about a trillion dollars in extra money. Let me say that again. Democrats are saying nobody gets another time of relief in the state and local governments get ane trillion dollars in extra money. Lets put a few facts on the table. Number one from state and local governments have always spent about onefourth, onefourth of the huge sums we sent them back in the springtime. 150 billion. Number two, the economists who calculate the likely covid related shortfalls for state and local governments have also produced estimates thatha our entire multiples less, entire multiples less than what democrats are demanding. Number three, in our act republicans try to get states and localities extra flexible around the unspent funds they already have. Extra flexibility around the unspent funds they already have. In my state, for example, 94 of the money we sent them has not been spent. We wanted to send huge sums to help with schools which are one of the states biggest expenses, typically in then state budget the two biggest items are education and medicaid. But forget all that. Democrats are demanding that weve sent state and local governments a colossal amount of money with no relationship to actual need while theyve only spent a quarter, 25 , of the money they have already gotten. Clearly this isnt about covid. Democrats think they smell an opening may have wanted for years to make uncle sam bailed out decades of mismanagement and broken policies in place like new york, new jersey and california. And so they decided that no working family anywhere in america can get another set, not one cent, unless they get to create a trillion dollars slush on for mismanage states completely and totally out of proportion to pandemic needs. Heres another one of those demands. Nobody gets another dime endlessly into and pay people more to stay home and go back to work. Now, mr. President , republicans agree without to continue additional federal jobless benefits during this extraordinary time. Senate republicans tried several times to stop them from expiring. The democratic leader blocked us. Our view which a majority of americans share is simply that if this incentivizes rehiring and reopening to pay people more to staypl home. Statement of the obvious. It this incentivizes rehiring and reopening to pay people more to stay home. Of democrats said they saw the point and were happy to negotiate on this. Speaker pelosis number two, House Majority leader said quote, its not 600 or bus. That was the number two democrat in the house. The senior senator from maryland said quote, we sorely understand we dont want to have a higher benefit than what someone can make working. Oh, no, but the speaker and the democratic leader overruled them, no deal, no deal unless we pay people more to stay home. Thats not about covid. Its not about a real reopening. Its about far left ideology. They preferred for the jobless benefits to go down to zero, zero, unless they can pay people more to stay home. Does anyone in this country really believe that relief for americans should be totally contingent on bailing out states for mismanagement that predated the pandemic by decades . Does anyone really think it was better for jobless benefits to completely expire unless we pay people more not to work . And does anyone really think that congress should walk away from countless subjects where a bipartisan agreement should be possible over these french positions fringe . Do americans think democrat to talk with from School Funding testing, tactic households, medicare primus, legal reforms a and more over this . I think also become in america would answer these questions the same way, but, unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi of theav democrac leader have answered them the opposite way. They think they have political leverage over the president of the United States, and so they are willing to personally increase the pain for vulnerable families unless they get the way on matters not related to covid. Republicans want to agree on the things we could agree to. Democrats said our way or the highway. Republicans want to send cash now, right now for schools, testing and Unemployment Benefits and argue over state bailouts later. Democrats said nobody gets the penny and less texas and florida bail out new jersey. Thats their position. Nobody gets the penny unless texas and florida bail out new jersey. So this is where we are. The previous ui benefits expire the the ppp close its doors. Over the o weekend president trp took steps to soften the blow of the democrats hostage tactics on American Families who need help most. His decisions while spare some americans some of the pain from the democrats hostagetaking. From the beginning, from the very beginning, mr. President , our side has tried Everything Possible to find Common Ground and delivere more help, but the democrats have said no. At least the American People know the score. At least they know the score. Now, on a totally different matter this weekend brought more unsettling news in the ongoing struggle for hong kong to of its Civil Liberties and selfgovernance. One of the reasons most prominent prodemocracy advocates was arrested yesterday for alleged violations of the socalled National Security law imposed by beijing. Last year after an historic election that saw mint hill and go to the polls to openly reject president shes preferred candidates, the Chinese Communist party moved quickly to choke hong kongers free expression. This july has been at the vanguard of the vibrant Hong Kongbased media and publishing world. He has to the most of his life advancing for cicely, precisely the sort of values that the ccp finds most repulsive. The freedom of thought and freedom of speech. The said it, the country, freedom loving nations across the world stand with jimmy lai and all the peaceful demonstrators who have met the business and of the ccps repression. Now, mr. President , over the weekend the United States achieved an ignominious milestone, 5 million americans are confirmed to have contracted covid19. By far the most in the world. Our country went from 4 million americans having had the disease to 5 million in 17 days, only 17 days. 1 million americans were infected in just 17 days. We lost american businesses, american wealth in an unbearable number of american lives. I number that will inevitably increase as the number of infections continues to rise. The brutal economic effect of