Friends -
Here we are, in the midst of the worst public health and economic crisis in more than 100 years.
As you read this, the number of COVID-19 cases is skyrocketing to the highest levels ever. We are approaching 200,000 newly confirmed cases of the virus every day. Hospitals and ICU beds are filled to capacity. Deaths are on the rise. People are worried about their jobs, how they are going to put food on the table for their families, and whether they'll be able to pay their rent or mortgage.
And what is the Republican Senate doing in response? NOTHING. All that Mitch McConnell and his Republican colleagues seem interested in during this unprecedented crisis is confirming right-wing judges and Federal Reserve Board members, and trying to delegitimize Biden's victory. Pathetic.
On Thursday, the Senate adjourned until November 30. By the time we return to the chamber, it is likely that 2 million more of our friends, neighbors and family members will have come down with the virus and 20,000 more will have died.
And when we do return, we will only have a limited amount of time to pass a number of programs put in place to protect working people during this pandemic.
Take a look at what the holiday season could look like in Trump-McConnell land:
Sisters and brothers: our message is simple. Congress cannot simply close up shop, go home and leave millions and millions of people in desperate anxiety.
The bad news is that we are at a point in this pandemic where the spread of the virus threatens to increase exponentially during the winter months. The good news is that it appears we are close to a vaccine that will go a long way toward hastening the end of this crisis.
This is precisely the moment we should be making it easier for people to care for their families and stop the spread of the virus. It is the right thing to do morally. It is the right thing to do from a health perspective. It is the right thing to do economically.
So today I want to ask you to do something important — to make your voice heard on this issue before my colleagues return from recess. What do you say?
Here’s what that means:
The coronavirus has impacted people throughout the world and our own country, and it has proven especially dangerous for low-income people and communities of color the most.
Before this pandemic began, half of American workers were living paycheck to paycheck. Now, as a result of the pandemic, that situation is even worse. When you have no job and nothing in savings, how can you pay for food, rent, health care, childcare, car payments and other expenses?
At the same time, the billionaire class has never had it so good. In fact, some of the wealthiest people in this country have made extraordinary amounts of money — almost $1 trillion — during the pandemic. That is obscene.
And now Republican leadership wants to shut down Congress and head home for a break?
Well, I respectfully disagree.
I think you do, as well.
We are in an unprecedented moment in American history, and it is easy to feel like we are alone or that we must all fend for ourselves. But that would be a terrible mistake. Now more than ever, we must remember that we are all in this together. And that's why making your voice heard right now is so important.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
Paid for by Friends of Bernie Sanders
PO BOX 391, Burlington, VT 05402
This email was sent to [email protected]. If you need to, unsubscribe here. You can also sign up to receive fewer emails. We hope you'll stay, because emails are such an important part of how we organize and how we raise money. In fact, there is no single greater source for our campaign's fundraising than emails like this one. And that's important, because no one person, not even Bernie Sanders, can take on the billionaire class alone.
Before you go about the rest of your day, help power our fight against the billionaire class by making a contribution today.
Submit this form to update your contact information.