You may have heard that Mitch McConnell is calling the United States Senate back into session next week.

Take a guess as to what Mitch McConnell thinks is “an urgent need” for the Senate to address:

• Making sure our nation’s health workers have the personal protective equipment and medical supplies they need to care for the rest of us throughout this pandemic.

• Providing struggling Americans additional financial relief they literally can’t live without.

• Getting serious about containing the coronavirus with a 21st century Marshall Plan for testing and contact tracing.

• Making sure every American — regardless of employment status — has access to health care during a global crisis unlike anything humanity has faced for at least a century.

• Giving businesses immunity from liability even if they fail to take reasonable steps to keep workers, patients and consumers from getting sick.

That’s right, Mitch McConnell — along with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Big Business — thinks the most pressing threat facing our nation right now is that people might need to take a company to court for doing something dangerous or illegal during this pandemic and its aftermath.

Mitch McConnell is essentially admitting that Corporate America intends to exploit the coronavirus emergency to obtain a “get out of jail free” card.

And he is more than happy to help — even if it costs lives and slows down the recovery.

The “conservative” playbook is transparent:

Step 1:

Disingenuously exploit a crisis to attack essential health and safety laws, consumer protections, workplace regulations, civil rights laws, environmental policies and other safeguards that limit the damage Big Business can inflict on Americans, our public health and the planet we live on.

Step 2:

Falsely cast “trial lawyers” as the boogeyman and restrict people’s right to have their day in court — even when companies blatantly and repeatedly violate the law, even when corporate wrongdoing injures and kills Americans.

You’ll be hearing a lot more about this from Public Citizen.

If you can, we would greatly appreciate anything you can chip in (there’s a link to make a donation in the P.S. below).

In the meantime, stay tuned and stay safe.

- Robert Weissman, President of Public Citizen

P.S. This message is part of our ongoing outreach to help you stay informed and involved as our nation and the world grapple with the coronavirus emergency. Public Citizen — like many nonprofits and other small businesses — is feeling the financial strain as this crisis intensifies. If you can, please consider donating to support the critical work we’re doing together. Thank you.
 
 
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