Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 3-20-20

Political News
Trump Wants To Send Americans Checks ‘Immediately’ In Response To Coronavirus
Biden Crushes Sanders In Primary Sweep Of Florida, Illinois, Arizona
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday that the Trump administration wants to send checks to Amer- icans “in the next two weeks” in an effort to help people cope with the economic fallout due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We’re looking at sending checks to Americans immedi- ately,” Mnuchin said during a press briefing from the White House. “Americans need cash now, the president wants to get cash now. I mean now—in the next few weeks.”
As the White House held its press conference Tuesday --
PRESIDENT TRUMP
with President Trump, Vice President Pence, Mnuchin and the coronavirus task force
present -- the Dow rallied nearly 1,000 points, after sus- taining historic losses on Mon- day.
“The president has in- structed me we have to do this now,” Mnuchin added, though did not give specifics, except to say that the amount would be significant and that millionaires would not receive it.
Fox News has learned, how- ever, that Mnuchin is press- ing GOP senators for a package that would send $200 billion- plus of payments to Americans by early April.
JOE BIDEN
White House Seeks $1 Trillion From Congress In Coronavirus Relief Push
Joe Biden swept another round of delegate-rich con- tests Tuesday – winning in Florida, Illinois and Arizona – further cementing the for- mer vice president as the dominant front-runner in the race for the Democratic pres- idential nomination over Bernie Sanders as the coronavirus threat scrambles the primary calendar for the foreseeable future.
Florida and Illinois will
award a hefty 219 and 155 pledged delegates, respec- tively, while Arizona is worth 67 delegates. Together, the contests are likely to only add to the pressure on Sanders to reconsider his presence in the race.
Last week, Sanders vowed to press on after a string of defeats, signaling he wants to continue to pressure Biden to embrace more progressive policies.
The Trump administration is asking Congress for roughly $1 trillion in new economic re- lief as lawmakers begin work on the next phase of coron- avirus relief efforts.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters that he worked with the president on the economic package. Their discussions included payments to small businesses, loan guarantees for industries like airlines and hotels, and a stimulus package for workers.
"We are looking at sending checks to Americans immedi- ately," Mnuchin said at a press conference at the White House on Tuesday. "Ameri- cans need cash now, and the president wants to get cash now. And I mean now, in the next two weeks."
Mnuchin briefed Senate Republicans on the proposal Tuesday afternoon and has al-
The furious pace of proposals comes as the spreading virus continues to pose a direct threat to Capitol building operations, as several lawmakers' offices remain closed as a result of at least two coronavirus cases among current D.C-based Hill staffers.
ready spoken with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D- Calif.
"This is a very unique situ- ation in this economy. We've put a proposal on the table that would inject $1 trillion into the economy, that is on top of the $300 billion from the IRS de- ferrals. Now let me just say: This is a combination of loans, this is a combination of direct
checks to individuals, this is a combination of creating liquid- ity for small businesses."
The request comes as a number of lawmakers call for a quick solution for some of the country's increasingly dire eco- nomic concerns. There is growing bipartisan agreement around the need to speed di- rect cash aid to individuals and families.
Millions In San Francisco Cope With Virus Restrictions
SAN FRANCISCO — Mil- lions in the San Francisco Bay Area found empty high- ways, shuttered stores and vacant streets Tuesday as of- ficials began enforcing an order for residents to stay at home and only leave for es- sential reasons in a desperate attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Miguel Aguirre, 38, his wife and two children were the only ones Tuesday along a street near San Francisco’s City Hall, an area normally bustling with office workers and commuters. He and his wife are janitors at the Boys & Girls Club. They had heard
of the shelter-in-place order but decided to show up any- way because they need the money, only to be told to go home by his supervisor.
“It’s really a scary situation for us because if we don’t work, we don’t eat,” said Aguirre, of Oakland, who brought his two daughters with him because schools were shuttered. He already lost his second job at the Hotel St. Francis when tourism conferences began cancelling a month ago.
“There have been days when I want to cry. But I have to keep going. This is a very difficult situation,” Aguirre
said.
Under orders issued Mon-
day affecting about 7 million people, including the cities of Berkeley and Oakland, su- permarkets, pharmacies, banks and gas stations re- main open, along with other essential government func- tions and businesses.
On Tuesday, the counties of Sonoma and Monterey and the city of Palm Springs, with a combined population of 1 million, also ordered resi- dents to stay at home, while Sacramento County directed its 1.5 million residents to do the same, one step short of a formal order.
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