Deja Screw

Cue the wonky memory waves. It is time for another edition of Deja Screw. Brought to you by Mitch McConnell, the reaper on the Hill.

Thanks to Moscow-Mitch, the Senate will not even take up the bill that would put $2000 into the pockets of Americans. Americans who are literally starving. Americans who have no clue where their next meal will come from. Americans who do not know if the roof over their head will still be there tomorrow. Americans whose businesses have closed with no hope of reopening. Americans left behind by the more than 330,000 who have died at the hands of the pandemic.

To someone like McConnell—who has an estimated net worth of more than $34 MILLION—$2000 means nothing. Zip. Nada. It has been decades since he first went to DC and earned an average paycheck. And, even when he began his congressional career, the average congressional salary was $75,000, which was nothing to sneeze at in 1985 nor now for that matter. I’m sure we could find more than a few people who have been displaced by the pandemic who would be willing to “settle” for that paycheck.

In the decades since ascending to the Hill, McConnell has forgotten about the people of his own home state. And, if he can represent that constituency by giving not a rats behind about their well-being—and still get re-elected over and over again—why should he care one iota about the rest of us?

McConnell decries the deficit when it comes to actually helping the American people. Where was his fiscal conservatism when the 2017 tax cuts raised the deficit to more than a trillion dollars? Where is his fiscal conservatism when billions upon billions of dollars are showered upon the military—in a time when we are not at war. I’ll tell you where it is—in his pocket which he has lined with the tax breaks that have jacked the debt ceiling up so high that it is just a number on paper with no connection to reality. The government prints money to build its war machines. It prints more so that Congress does not miss a paycheck. But, when it comes to us peons, the workforce that keeps America running, they cannot turn their backs on us fast enough.

But, here’s the thing, as we wrote in May 2019, the Majority Leader is not the last word in having legislation brought to the Senate floor. What was true then is still true now. Any senator can call for a vote on any piece of legislation and if there are at least 51 senators who want the vote to take place, it will happen regardless of whether or not McConnell is on board. Those are the rules.

On December 28th, the House passed a stand alone resolution entitled CASH Act of 2020. This bill has one purpose and one purpose only: amend the most recent COVID relief package to include $2000 per person as opposed to the $600 it currently provides. When the Resolution made its way to the other side of Congress, however, McConnell sabotaged it by adding additional terms that he knows Democrats cannot abide. In doing so, he is protecting the GOP from having the resolution hung around their necks when they all vote to let their constituents starve, lose their homes, or worse. More of the same--deja screw.

“So, What Can I Do?” You Ask?

McConnell is not going to lift a finger to help Americans. But, there are 99 other people in the Senate and we only need 51 of them to demand a vote to make it happen. There are a couple of ways you can help:

• Text cashSign a petition to pass the CASH Act to deliver critical aid to struggling families. to 50409 and you can join me and 1,200 of our closest friends in signing the “PASS the CASH Act Immediately” petition. When you do, a copy of the petition will be sent to both of your Senators. And, you can invite your friends to sign on as well.

• Want to send your own letter? Send senateContact your senators in the U.S. Senate to 50409 and lobby your senator to be one of the 51 legislators who do the right thing and vote to put the financial relief Americans need into their wallets--NOW. You can also create a new petition out of your letter by following the prompts once your letter wings its way to your legislators inbox.

And, if you need access to resources such as food banks, self care, SNAP or public assistance benefits, testing locations in your community, or paying your utility bills, send covid to 50409 and we will connect you to relevant resources in your community.