Pelosi Responds to Governors' Bipartisan Letter Urging House to Renew UI

Press Release

Today, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi replied to a bipartisan letter from the Governor of Rhode Island, Lincoln D. Chafee, and the Governor of Nevada, Brian Sandoval, urging the House to act swiftly to extend emergency unemployment insurance. In her response, Leader Pelosi reiterated Democrats' continuing work to renew this essential lifeline in the face of relentless obstruction by House Republicans, decrying Republicans' refusal to act as "callous, shortsighted and immoral."

"It is unconscionable that the House has not acted to renew emergency unemployment insurance," wrote Leader Pelosi. "Never before has Congress allowed emergency unemployment insurance to expire while long-term unemployment rates have remained so high."

The governors' letter, addressed to Speaker Boehner and Leader Pelosi, expressed strong support for the bipartisan legislation to extend emergency unemployment compensation passed out of the Senate last week. Democrats' discharge petition on House legislation on emergency unemployment insurance has been signed by 193 members. Despite this, and the fact that more than 2.4 million Americans have been cut off from this critical economic support, Republicans continue to block the House from considering any and all legislation to renew emergency unemployment insurance.

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