The House just passed the new COVID-19 emergency relief package. This negotiated compromise isn't perfect, but it's a vital first step for Virginia families who need help now. The final package included several major #VA07 priorities – here are the highlights. (Thread)
✅ $9 billion to support the free, fast, and equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines
✅ $22 billion for testing supplies, improved public health infrastructure, and COVID mitigation efforts
✅ $9 billion for healthcare providers on the front lines
✅ Extending unemployment insurance through March 14, 2021
✅ Extending the $300/week of federal assistance, in addition to the amount people receive from their state
✅ Extending unemployment insurance eligibility for gig workers
✅ $284 billion in forgivable first and second round loans through the PPP program
✅ For smaller businesses, $20 billion for targeted EIDL grants
✅ Commonsense fixes to PPP to support independent restaurants & address their unique payroll restrictions
✅ $13 billion for increased SNAP and child nutrition benefits
✅ Stimulus checks of up to $600 per adult and child
✅ $82 billion in funding for schools & colleges, and $10 billion for childcare assistance
✅ $7 billion to increase access to high-speed internet and $250 million to expand telehealth services
✅ $4.5 billion in mental health funding, including $1.6 billion for the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant Program and $50 million for suicide prevention
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
This morning, my colleagues and I returned from a bipartisan congressional trip to Turkey, Afghanistan, and the Syria-Jordan border. We met with security, intelligence, and diplomatic leadership from our U.S. forces and foreign partners. spanberger.house.gov/news/documents…
Over and over, we heard about the danger posed to Americans if we abandon our Kurdish allies, the Syrian Defense Forces. The SDF has been our primary ally on the ground in the fight against ISIS, working and dying alongside American troops.
To walk back our support of the SDF and invite Turkey to act aggressively in northern Syria is a misguided & catastrophic blow to our national security interests.
The recent drone attack on Saudi oil facilities was egregious and extremely destabilizing at a time of heightened tensions. And right now, we need clear-eyed policy, not knee-jerk calls for military action. (1/7)
Given the Yemeni Houthis claim responsibility while the administration pins the blame on Iran, Members of Congress need to see all available information—classified and unclassified—about this attack before making any calls for offensive military action which could lead us...(2/7)
...to war with Iran. As a former intelligence officer, I truly understand the serious threat Iran poses to U.S. interests and those of our allies in the region. (3/7)
Our #VA07 Rural Broadband Summit is beginning shortly! Our panelists @akmeacham, @Ali_Christopher, and Richard Jenkins from @USDA are up first. Follow today’s conversation in the thread below 👇
Broadband is essential for business, education, agriculture, emergency response, telemedicine, and more. Lack of access impacts rural residents in #VA07 and across the U.S., creating a #DigitalDivide between communities. #VA07BroadbandSummit
1. Business and the Economy 2. Education 3. Healthcare 4. Democracy 5. Quality of Life
The five pillars of the rural broadband issue, according to our panelist @Ali_Christopher. #VA07BroadbandSummit
This emergency declaration is a reckless, knee-jerk decision that sets a troubling precedent, and this declaration fundamentally undermines the constitutional authority of Congress. (1/4)
Notably, it comes after Congress successfully conducted bipartisan, bicameral negotiations that resulted in the passage of a bipartisan appropriations bill last night—legislation that funds the government and provides for border security investments. (2/4)
Additionally, the president’s unilateral action of declaring a national emergency actually jeopardizes our national security by pulling critical funding from our military. (3/4)