FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
APRIL 20, 2020

PRESS CONTACT:
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Congress, Trump Still Not Doing Enough for Working People

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Trump and congressional leaders are nearing a compromise on a new coronavirus relief package expanding the small business loan program that quickly ran out of funding last week. However, the deal does not include: continued and expanded support for unemployment insurance, funding for state and local governments, corporate accountability mechanisms, hazard pay or support for essential workers, health care for uninsured people, money for the U.S. Postal Service, or protections for our election system.

Tax March Campaign Director Dana Bye responded:

“How can Trump and his friends in Congress look at the state of the country right now, look at the so-called ‘relief’ packages they’ve passed thus far, and still decide to exclude health care for uninsured people, hazard pay for essential workers, bolstered support for unemployed people, or any accountability mechanisms for the corporate bailout slush fund created by the last relief package? Maybe it’s because the president’s echo chamber includes people like Steve Mnuchin, who thinks people can survive off of $1,200 for 10 weeks.”

Before this tentative deal was announced, Tax March released a list of ‘Dos and Don’ts’ for lawmakers to follow. Our priorities remain the same: put people and small businesses ahead of corporations, implement strict accountability measures for the $4.3 trillion corporate bailout fund under Mnuchin’s grip, and bolster social safety net programs to ensure people who need it most can receive the help they need.

The next coronavirus relief package must correct the shortcomings of the first three packages, and Democrats can ensure that by rejecting any proposals that do not actively prioritize the needs of people and families who are suffering the most. And, unless workers receive hazard pay, uninsured people have access to insurance, unemployed people receive the support they need, state and local authorities have the funding to get their communities through this crisis, and corporations are held accountable for putting workers first, this pandemic will continue to lay bare the widening gap between the president’s executive friends and the rest of us.