Daily Digest for December 4, 2020 Posted at 7:45 a.m. by Michael Olson |
Good morning. Minnesota lawmakers continue to work behind the scenes on a package of economic relief proposals aimed at helping businesses and workers who have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the sticking points for the state's divided Legislature appears to be a proposal to issue $500 checks to low-income families.
State House Democrats proposed the one-time emergency payments for families enrolled in the Minnesota Family Investment Program, also known as MFIP. The plan would cost nearly $16 million. The money would come from the state’s share of federal block grant funds through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, or TANF.
House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, said the proposal should be an easy one for lawmakers and the governor to accept.
“It would go to Minnesota’s neediest families,” Hortman said. “It would almost instantly go back into the economy and serve businesses, restaurants for take-out, you name it. It’s an economic stimulus, and I’m hopeful we can include that in this package at this time.”
But even before Gov. Tim Walz sat down with House and Senate leaders to negotiate a deal on a relief package, there were concerns raised by Senate Republicans about the proposed payments.
Biden has asked the nation's top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, to become his chief medical adviser and said he plans to call on Americans to wear masks for the first 100 days of his administration.
In his final weeks, Trump could dole out many pardons to friends, allies On more than one occasion, President Donald Trump has demonstrated his willingness to use his pardon power to pluck a political ally or associate out of legal trouble.
In July, he commuted the sentence of his longtime friend and informal adviser Roger Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress. Last week, he pardoned his first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian ambassador.
That has set the stage for a possible run on pardons in the closing weeks of the Trump administration. The list of Trump associates who are facing or could face federal charges is long.
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