Tag: Trump botched COVID-19 response tanked the economy

Unemployment Remains High As Republicans Block Relief Bill

Thursday’s unemployment data showed that 1.6 million Americans filed new unemployment or Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims last week, even as Senate Republicans continue to block a House-passed bill that would provide trillions in emergency relief funds.

While the number of people filing traditional unemployment claims — about 881,000 — was down a bit from the previous week, layoffs remained high. When combined with Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims, the number of total new unemployment claims was higher than the previous week.

Tens of millions of Americans remain out of work. Continue reading.

America’s real hoax: Record highs on Wall Street as millions of jobless people can’t pay rent

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The shocking disconnect between a thriving U.S. investor economy and its millions of unemployed as a recipe for even worse social unrest.

Don’t blame Lisa Scott, a 43-year-old certified nursing assistant who lives in the Oxford Circle section of Philadelphia, for not celebrating this week as the Standard & Poor’s 500 index soared to yet another record high, as Wall Street’s unbelievable — in every sense of the word — summer stretches into a new month.

On Wednesday afternoon, as the Dow was rising yet another 454 points, Scott — who hasn’t worked since the coronavirus turned her world upside down in March — was far too busy worrying why Pennsylvania still hasn’t processed her unemployment claim, whether her landlord will keep allowing her to pay whatever rent she can and how she’d be able to seek new work with her 12-year-old at home for virtual schooling. Continue reading.

Airline Job Cuts Could Pressure Congress and Trump on Stimulus

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American Airlines said it would furlough 19,000 workers if lawmakers do not extend aid to the industry, which has been hammered by the pandemic.

American Airlines warned employees on Tuesday that it would cut up to 19,000 workers on Oct. 1, saying that there was little sign that the pandemic-induced reluctance to travel was diminishing.

The airline is looking to cut thousands of flight attendants, pilots, technicians, gate agents and other staff, it said. Including buyouts, retirements and leaves of absence, the company expects to have about 40,000 fewer employees on Oct. 1 than it did before the pandemic, a 30 percent decline in its work force.

American is just the latest airline to predict bad news. Earlier this summer, United Airlines said that it could furlough as many as 36,000 employees in the fall. And, on Monday, Delta Air Lines warned that it might have to furlough as many as 1,941 pilots in October, even after nearly as many had accepted buyouts. Continue reading.

School reopenings with COVID-19 offer preview of chaotic fall

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Thousands of students and teachers across the country are quarantining just days into the new school year, highlighting the challenges of resuming in-person instruction during a pandemic.

While many schools aren’t scheduled to reopen until later this month or September, those that have are offering a preview of the chaos that awaits districts this fall, particularly in hot spots in the South and Midwest where the virus is spreading uncontrollably.

In Georgia’s Cherokee County School District, where students are not required to wear masks, nearly 2,200 students — mostly high schoolers — are quarantining after coming into contact with one of 116 students or 25 teachers and staff members with COVID-19. Another 53 teachers and staff members are also quarantining. Continue reading.

Trump’s Bogus Optimism Won’t Stop Pandemic Or Boost Economy

I have some bad news for anyone concerned about the economy. Very bad news. Donald Trump tweeted last Monday, “The Economy is coming back fast!” Tuesday, he proclaimed: “Things are coming back, and they’re coming back very rapidly. A lot sooner than people thought.”

This is an unmistakable signal that the economy is not coming back rapidly and may not be coming back at all. Whenever Trump boasts of something happening soon, it’s time to settle in for a good, long wait, or maybe just give up hope entirely.

Trump made his claims as the COVID-19 pandemic was saying the opposite. Florida set a record for the most new cases in a single day for any state and broke its own record for most deaths from the virus. California Gov. Gavin Newsom banned indoor operations in bars, restaurants and movie theaters, while closing hair salons, workout facilities and malls. Continue reading.

Trump steps up attacks on Biden over economy

The Hill logoPresident Trump is stepping up his economic attacks on Joe Biden, seeking to regain strength on an issue once seen as his golden ticket to reelection.

A number of polls still show that voters on net approve of Trump’s performance on the economy, but some surveys now show his presumptive Democratic opponent with an edge on the issue over him as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the economy.

Biden also has sought to press an advantage and in recent days has rolled out his own economic proposals on how to bring about a recovery. Continue reading.