1 Senate Passes Massive $2-Trillion Stimulus Package
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is praising the passage of the emergency coronavirus relief package overnight. As McConnell sees it, Senators ‘went from the mostly partisan impeachment to unanimously approving a massive piece of legislation to benefit Americans.’ He’s not kidding – the massive omnibus bill passed 96-0. What caused all this ‘unity?’ McConnell said that lawmakers may have been inspired by other good acts being committed across the country during this difficult time. As for what’s in it exactly, there’s something for average Americans, as well as a $25-million bounty for the Kennedy Center. Here’s a breakdown: The package will give most Americans who make less than 75-thousand a year a 12-hundred check...if you make more than 99-thousand, you get nothing. Though all families will get an additional 500 for each child. There is also money set aside for small businesses in the form of loans. It expands unemployment insurance for workers – boosting the maximum benefit by $600 per week and provide laid-off workers their full pay for four months. Eligibility is extended to independent contractors and the self-employed.
2 Trump Approves More Disaster Declarations
More states are being declared major disaster zones due to the coronavirus. President Trump has just approved Texas, Florida and Louisiana. They join Iowa, California, New York and Washington. And Colorado could be next. While Trump continues cheering social distancing measures, he also says that he can see loosening restrictions in “sections” of the country. “The more lives we can save and the sooner we can eventually get people back to work, back to school, and back to normal,” he explained. “And we are obviously looking at that, also. People are asking: 'Is that an alternative?' Absolutely, it is an alternative.” Maybe so, but Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top expert on infectious disease, says there’s something else we need to consider – that the novel coronavirus could come back in "cycles” and "very well might" become experienced seasonally. He noted, "We really need to be prepared for another cycle.”
3 Third death in San Antonio from COVID-19 as officials report total cases increase to 84
A third person in San Antonio has died from complications of COVID-19, San Antonio and Bexar County officials reported Wednesday evening. The patient, a woman in her 50s, had chronic underlying health conditionsand was being treated at Mission Trail Baptist Hospital, where she ultimately passed away. The total number of confirmed cases in Bexar County of the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus is now 84, an increase of 15 from Tuesday, according to new data from the Metropolitan Health District. The most recent death was a woman in her 50's who was said to have had chronic underlying health conditions. A woman in her 80's and a woman in her 40's died earlier.