Date Posted

As a country we continue to mourn the loss of Congressman John Lewis. I urge you to read about Lewis who was a true warrior who committed his life to achieving racial equality in America. Born in the Deep South, his experiences as a child and a young man molded him into the devoted civil rights activist and distinguished elected public official that he became. He did the work, committed to nonviolent protest, subjected himself to beatings and was jailed for a just cause that he never diverted from until the day he died. We honor the man and his commitment to his principles and to justice that so few have had like the Honorable John Lewis.

He was eulogized by three past Presidents and at the same time disrespected by our sitting President. You would expect during times like this a President would take every opportunity to try to bring our country together. An opportunity to try to heal the pain that too many Americans are experiencing. But no, it is an opportunity wasted by his silence. And it is exactly his silence that demonstrates who he really is, what he stands for, and the legacy that he is so concerned about. Ultimately, his ugly legacy will be buried in the shadows of great men like John Lewis forever.

This is a critical week regarding economic support for the millions of unemployed Americans in dire straits, struggling to pay their rent and mortgages and hurting to put food on their tables. Now is the time to set aside partisan politics and address the needs of the American people in these unprecedented circumstances. The revenue of states and local governments has been decimated due to the negative impacts of the pandemic and unemployment. If there is no support for state and local governments, then ultimately there will be devastating layoffs of public employees and the elimination of essential services. The Democrats in the House passed the Heroes Act in May and the Republican Senate has done nothing but propose cuts to expanded unemployment benefits and tax cuts for big business. Time to send Trump and McConnell packing.