Next Move for Pelosi, Schumer Is 'Rooseveltian'

Senate minority leader says coronavirus relief plan is response to call for 'big and bold' action
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted May 8, 2020 10:16 AM CDT
Next Move for Pelosi, Schumer Is 'Rooseveltian'
In this Feb. 11, 2020, file photo, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, joined by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill, in Washington.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

With millions out of work and the future still murky amid the coronavirus pandemic, Americans are wondering what relief may soon be coming their way. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have something in the works: specifically, an aggressive economic stimulus plan that Schumer describes in a most lofty manner. "We need Franklin Rooseveltian-type action, and we hope to take that in the House and Senate in a very big and bold way," the New York lawmaker said Thursday during an MSNBC interview, per the Hill. He added that he and Pelosi were coordinating the plan together, "which you will hear [about] shortly." It's not exactly clear what he means by "shortly," but per Fox News, Pelosi would like to introduce the bill on the House floor as early as next week.

There's been skirmishing among Democrats and Republicans on how next to address the needs of struggling Americans. GOP leaders have indicated they want to see what effects previous pandemic relief has before offering more. "We ought to take a pause here, do a good job of evaluating what we've already done," Senate Majority Leader McConnell said earlier this week. But Schumer warns that kind of caution could prolong an economy spiral akin to the one in the '30s. "The people like McConnell and McCarthy and even Trump who say, 'Let's wait and do nothing'—well, they remind me of the old Herbert Hoovers," Schumer said, per the Hill. "Hoover said let's just wait [the Great Depression] out. It got worse and worse." (More Nancy Pelosi stories.)

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