An Economic Cliff

Last week, Dr. Paul Krugman wrote in his New York Times column that Americans are facing another economic cliff. This cliff comes not on August 1, when extended unemployment benefits from the CARES act expire, but rather this Friday, when states will cut off that extended unemployment benefit for millions who are collecting unemployment.This comes on top of more and more businesses closing again after states reopened prematurely. Even last week, there were more than a million new unemployment claims, and that will grow in the next few weeks. 

Republicans in the Senate are completely oblivious to the plight of working-class Americans, as they consider another round of disaster relief spending. They want a huge payroll tax cut - threatening the health not only of Americans, but of Social Security and Medicare. And that doesn't help unemployed Americans who - wait for it - are not getting a payroll check. They want to limit the liability of companies who open their doors, forcing employees to work, but not holding companies accountable when those employees contract COVID-19. And, of course, they want more tax cuts for the wealthy.

More importantly, they are resisting more funding for schools, while demanding as a bumper sticker slogan that schools reopen. Again, they simply ignore the facts and recommendations of experts in education, epidemiology, and building systems design and operation. Many on the right actually threaten to withhold Federal money to states/school districts that don't reopen schools fully, while cash-strapped states, who cannot run deficits, are trying to deal with a myriad of public services that the people need in the middle of a pandemic.

So get ready for the cliff.