McConnell Rejects Measures Recommended by Public Health Experts That Would Support Working Families During Pandemic Crisis

Washington, D.C. —  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made a mockery of the millions of Americans looking to Congress for leadership in the face of a global pandemic. In comments to reporters, McConnell called the proposed emergency aid package an “ideological wish list” and dismissed the idea of voting on this package out of hand. 

Do Republican Senators agree with McConnell that the House proposal is an “ideological wish list” if they’re asking for: 

• Free testing for all Americans
• Food assistance to children and families whose lives have been disrupted 
• Unemployment insurance for those who have suffered economically from the pandemic
• Temporary sick leave for those doing the responsible thing and limiting their exposure to vulnerable populations while they are sick.

Every Republican Senator needs to answer for Mitch McConnell’s partisan comments immediately. As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United States continues to grow, the public’s anxiety grows along with it — and they are looking to Washington for leadership.

"We have experts telling our elected leaders exactly what we can do to slow coronavirus’s spread and improve economic conditions for millions, and the House is poised to pass a bill to do just that,” said Joshua Karp of Fix Our Senate. “Mitch McConnell’s partisanship and obstruction is literally standing between the American people and the resources we need to face this crisis head on. Every single Republican Senator needs to answer whether they agree that these common sense proposals are ‘ideological’ and a ‘wish list.’ They need to answer to the public immediately.”