Bohemian Crip And The Ady Barkan Coronavirus Call...

Minor technical glitches didn't dampen the energy for the maximum-capacity conference call for Be A Hero PAC, Working Families Party, National Nurses Union, and other progressive groups Wednesday. Barkan shared the story of what mysterious sudden illness has done to his life and said that one blessing since the last economic crisis is that the progressive movement is stronger than in 2008. He then introduced Senator Warren, adding that it was "not her first rodeo" in dealing with stimulus packages or the like.

Warren stressed the need for a grassroots stimulus, adding "no more trickle-down recoveries!" She listed proposals for paid sick and family leave, a freeze on evictions and foreclosures, as well as an additional payment to Social Security beneficiaries, as well as increases for SNAP and Medicaid.  "If taxpayer's money is used, we should be sure all Americans benefit." she said, her twang getting slightly more pronounced as she ramped up her remarks.(my notes don't specify if the $200 SS payment would be on-going or one-time, as in last stimulus.)

Pramila Jayapal, whose  Seattle district was one of the hardest-hit says she's impressed with how her constituents have come together.  She says it will be a model, going forward of how to reorganize society, as things deemed impractical just a short time ago, such as universal health care, take center stage in the conversation about the new reality.  She still faults the federal response, adding that local hospitals in her area are nearing capacity and the medical ship they've been promised still hasn't arrived.
Bonnie Castillo, National Nurses Union President, with experience coordinating disaster efforts said she is worried about medical professionals working too much and not being protected(there is not enough protective equipment) She cautions against fining stories of people making their own masks heartwarming and says it will encourage industry groups to push for relaxed standards or maybe even change the law in ways that don't benefit front-line professionals, much as "years of cost-cutting" have made the numbers of beds smaller and shifts longer.  "There is no excuse...we've had test runs at this with H1N1, SARS, and MERS, as well as ebola...we should be getting this right."