Page 3 - aruba-today-20201009

A3
U.S. NEWS Friday 9 OctOber 2020
Pelosi 'at the table' even after Trump scrapped virus talks

By LISA MASCARO shut them down.
AP Congressional Corre- "If there's one thing that has
spondent to be in this bill that he has
WASHINGTON (AP) — House never made as a priority, it's
Speaker Nancy Pelosi said crushing the virus — instead
Thursday she's "at the table" of the denial, delay, dis-
ready to negotiate a coro- tortion, lack of reality that
navirus aid package after the president has all along
President Donald Trump brought to this," Pelosi said.
abruptly halted talks and "We've told the White
left the economy reeling, House, we're at the table,"
his GOP allies scrambling she said.
and millions of Americans But Pelosi said of the presi-
without additional support dent's attitude toward the
weeks before Election Day. virus, as he brags about be-
Pelosi said she told Trump's ing a "perfect specimen"
chief negotiator, Treasury who is responding well to
Secretary Steven Mnuchin, experimental treatments:
she is willing to consider a "His disassociation from re-
measure to prop up the ality would be funny if it
airline industry, which is fac- weren't so deadly."
ing widespread layoffs. But Pelosi raised the prospect
that aid, she said, must go of the 25th Amendment to
alongside broader legisla- Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, the Constitution — which
tion that includes the kind Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020. allows the president's Cabi-
of COVID testing, tracing Associated Press net members to remove
and health practices that him from office — as a top-
Democrats say are needed The sharp words from all aid. More than 210,000 First he told the Republi- ic for future discussion. She
as part of a national strat- sides after Trump lashed out Americans have died and can leaders in Congress refused to elaborate.
egy to "crush the virus." at Congress come during millions more are infected on Tuesday to quit negoti- Trump's diagnosis last week
"Lives are at stake," Pelosi the final weeks in a cam- with a virus that shows no ating on an aid package. coincides with an outbreak
said at the Capitol. "This is paign year fast turning into signs of abating heading By Wednesday he was try- across the White House, as
deadly serious." a referendum on Trump's into what public health ex- ing to bring everyone back a number of the visitors and
In a stunning admission, handling of the pandemic. perts warn will be a difficult to the table for his priority high level advisers to the
Senate Majority Leader Republican allies are peel- flu season and winter. items — including $1,200 president have now tested
Mitch McConnell said Thurs- ing away from Trump, with "There's no question that stimulus checks for almost positive and are in quaran-
day that he had stopped some calling his decision to the proximity to the elec- all adult Americans. tine.
going to the White House withdraw from virus aid talks tion has made this much Democrats have made After a Rose Garden event
two months ago because a mistake. Normally, the more challenging," McCo- it clear they will not do a to announce Trump's Su-
he disagreed with its coro- splintering could provide nnell said. piecemeal approach un- preme Court nominee,
navirus protocols. His last grounds for a robust pack- The president blew up ne- til the Trump administra- Amy Coney Barrett, two
visit was Aug. 6. age, but with other Repub- gotiations this week when tion signs off on a broader, Republican senators tested
"My impression was their licans refusing to spending he announced his with- comprehensive plan they positive. They are now iso-
approach to how to han- more money, it appears no drawal, and then quick- are proposing for virus test- lating. A third GOP senator
dle this was different from relief will be coming with ly reversed course and ing, tracing and other ac- who was in contact with
mine and what I insisted we Americans already begin- reached out for fresh aid. tions to stop its spread. one of the other two is also
do in the Senate, which is to ning early voting. It all came in a head-spin- They have scaled back a now positive and in isola-
wear a mask and practice McConnell held out hope ning series of tweets and $3 trillion measure to a $2.2 tion. Several members of
social distancing," McCo- that "we ought to continue comments days after he re- trillion proposal. The White Congress have tested posi-
nnell said at a campaign to talk" even as several of turned to the White House House presented a $1.6 tive, including a congress-
stop in northern Kentucky his own senators said they after his hospitalization with trillion counter offer. Talks man who lives next door to
for his own reelection. do not want to pass more COVID-19. were ongoing when Trump one of those senators.q
West Virginia site chosen for high-speed travel facility

By CUNEYT DIL (9.7-kilometer) testing track hour. Certification for com- ing a new industry straight passed a bill that would
Associated Press and other safety facilities mercial travel is still expect- to the place where West give the Missouri Highways
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — over hundreds of acres for ed to be at least a decade Virginians once mined," and Transportation Com-
Virgin Hyperloop One will the electromagnetic levita- away. said Jay Walder, CEO of mittee the authority to form
build a certification center tion transportation technol- West Virginia and Virgin of- Virgin Hyperloop One, at a public-private partner-
in West Virginia for the high- ogy. ficials said the new center an announcement with the ship to build it.
speed transportation con- Hyperloop technology, will bring thousands of tem- governor and state's U.S. Delaware, Georgia, New
cept that uses enclosed which Tesla founder Elon porary construction jobs to senators. Mexico, North Carolina,
pods to zip passengers un- Musk is also developing, a state that has witnessed Missouri had hoped to land North Dakota, Ohio, South
derground at over 600 mph hopes to one day provide economic decline with the the project for an ultrafast Dakota, Tennessee, Tex-
(960 km/h). clean-energy fast travel downturn of the coal indus- Hyperloop track that would as and Washington state
The company had re- across the country. Virgin try. The facility will employ transport passengers be- were also in the running
ceived bids from more is studying building a route up to 200 full-time workers tween St. Louis and Kansas for the facility, according
than a dozen states in the that would link Chicago when completed. City in 30 minutes. State to a Virgin Hyperloop news
past year to build a 6-mile and Pittsburgh in under an "What we're doing is bring- lawmakers earlier this year release.q