Coronavirus

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, our bipartisan discussions are continuing to make significant headway toward another relief package for the American people. The Democratic leader, Speaker Pelosi, Leader McCarthy, and I have been working around the clock for several days now. The talks remain productive. In fact, I am even more optimistic now than I was last night that a bipartisan, bicameral framework for a major rescue package is very close at hand.

Well, let's face it, though, it doesn't help struggling Americans keep their jobs or endure unemployment or pay their rent or get vaccines any faster to keep hearing that we are having good discussions. What families across the country deserve--what they have needed and deserved for months now--is an outcome, another targeted relief package to get more assistance into their hands as fast as possible.

Struggling small business owners have already waited too long for a targeted second round of PPP. Laid-off workers have already waited too long to have expiring programs extended. Kids, teachers, and families have already waited too long for funding to help schools reopen safely. We have already waited too long to fully fund vaccine distributions so our scientists' historic sprint toward a safe and effective vaccine is followed up by an equally important logistical effort.

This has been an unbelievably hard year for our country. We have seen normal daily life grind to a halt and take a record-setting economy right down with it. And even as we have watched doctors, nurses, and researchers make lifesaving history, we have lost more than 300,000 Americans entirely too soon.

Like I have said, the Senate will be right here until an agreement is passed, whenever that may be. We will just continue voting. There are some more well-qualified nominees for important posts that we can confirm in the meantime. So let's finish our business for the American people

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