Long game: Dueling COVID relief bills; DC statehood supporters try again Democratic leaders pledged to move ahead this week with President Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package. “The Senate, as early as next week, will begin the process of considering a very strong COVID-19 relief bill,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on the floor last Thursday. On the House side, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said at a press conference that lawmakers would vote on a budget resolution required for reconciliation, a parliamentary move that would allow the bill to pass the Senate with a simple majority. Meanwhile, a group of ten Republican Senators presented President Biden and Vice President Harris with an alternative relief bill worth $618 billion, which they claim is in keeping with Biden’s “calls for unity.” There is still no final agreement, but a two-hour meeting at the White House yesterday was described by at least one of the participants as a “good exchange.” As it stands, the package reportedly would not include several measures called for in the White House bill, such as increasing the federal minimum wage and it would narrow eligibility for the $1,400 stimulus checks that Biden proposes. A bill to grant statehood to the District of Columbia was introduced last week in the House by Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, with 202 original co-sponsors. Speaker Pelosi has committed to a vote on the House floor. Although a companion bill was introduced by Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), chances for Senate approval are slim. Democrats would need ten Republicans to support the bill. Many GOP Senators have already expressed opposition to DC statehood since it would undoubtedly result in two additional Democratic senators.
Washington Watch is published weekly when Congress is in session. Published monthly during extended recess or adjournment.
Spotlight on Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico coronavirus statistics for February 1
According to the Puerto Rico Health Department, 163,469 people are believed to have been infected with COVID-19, an increase of 5,521 since January 25. This points to a decrease in the rate of new cases, as the number between January 18 and January 25 was 7,630. The death toll is currently 1,836, with 58 people having died during the last week.
In November, the Health Department changed the way it recorded cases, splitting them between confirmed cases (as determined by molecular diagnostic testing), probable cases (as determined by antigen testing) and suspicious cases (as determined by serological, non-diagnostic testing). Viewed through that prism, Puerto Rico has had 87,440 confirmed cases, 6,798 probable cases, and 69,231 suspicious cases since the virus arrived on the Island.
There are currently 282 people hospitalized due to COVID, a decrease of 30 since last week. Altogether, 28,991 people are believed to have been infected since the start of January. In total, 310 died from COVID that month.
Vaccination efforts on the Island continue in a piecemeal fashion. While State Election Commission (CEE, in Spanish) employees briefly began obtaining vaccines before the process was halted by the Puerto Rico Health Department, mayors in Puerto Rico’s mountain region have noted that it has not been possible to obtain vaccines to inoculate their municipalities’ elderly residents in accordance with the existing strategy. “We’ve requested that vaccines for the elderly be sent, but we haven’t been successful,” Jayuya mayor Jorge González told El Nuevo Día.
Additionally, the government’s attempts to create a web site to make vaccine appointments resulted in confusion. The Puerto Rico Department of Health indicated that the web site, turnospr.com had gone live, but was later forced to concede that the site was not yet open to the public.
Governor Pedro Pierluisi declares state of emergency to combat gender-based violence
Governor Pedro Pierluisi signed an executive order Sunday of last week declaring a state of emergency due to gender-based violence. The executive order, OE-2021-13, creates a multi-department committee, the Gender-Based Violence Prevention, Support, Rescue and Education Committee (PARE Committee, in Spanish), to evaluate existing measures and recommend policies to help curb such crimes. It also orders the creation of a mobile app to allow victims of gender-based violence to request help safely and privately.
The PARE Committee has already begun meeting, and has already drawn criticism from its exclusion of certain groups, such as survivors’ groups.
Mainland salaries are almost double those recorded in Puerto Rico
On average, workers in Puerto Rico earn $24,377 annually, which is less than half the amount for the United States ($53,139), according to data from the 2019 census Community Survey. The impact of this considerable gap is intensified when the cost of living is considered, which in 2020 was estimated to be 0.2% higher than in major U.S. cities. The wage gap could be narrowed if President Biden's proposal to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour goes forward. Governor Pedro Pierluisi reportedly supports raising the minimum wage.
Puerto Rico NGOs meet with White House officials
Last Thursday, more than a hundred Puerto Rico Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) took part in a meeting with White House officials, a session organized by the Hispanic Federation. White House officials at the meeting included Julie Chávez Rodríguez, director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs; Cabinet Undersecretary Cristóbal Alex; Carmel Martin, deputy director for the Domestic Public Policy Council for Economic Mobility; and Jennifer Molina, spokesperson for Hispanic media. Speakers included Frankie Miranda, President and CEO of the Hispanic Federation; artist Lin-Manuel Miranda and his father, Hispanic Federation Founding President Luis Miranda; Amaris Torres Rivera of the Fundación Fondo de Acceso a la Justicia; Gloria Amador, president of the Puerto Rico Primary Healthcare Association; and Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY).
Participants urged an end to the austerity measures set in place by PROMESA, as well as reforms to the act to make it less punitive and to ensure funding for the University of Puerto Rico and other entities. They also called for the reconstruction of Puerto Rico’s power grid using renewable energy and urged improvements in FEMA operations in Puerto Rico.
View From The White House
Marking a clear break with the previous administration’s handling of Russia and Vladimir Putin, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken took to Twitter to criticize the “use of harsh tactics against peaceful protesters and journalists by Russian authorities” and called for the release of Putin's critic Alexei Navalny.
Saying that “we can’t wait any longer” to deal with the climate crisis, President Biden ordered a suspension of leases for the development of fossil fuels on federal lands and directed government agencies to purchase zero-emission vehicles for their fleets.
Former president Donald Trump named two new lawyers for his upcoming impeachment trial after his original defense team reportedly fell apart over Trump’s insistence that they focus on his false claims of election fraud.
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