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Schumer slams Senate Republicans' coronavirus relief plan as "emaciated"

03 September 2020
 Dan Ackermann

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) lambasted Senate Republicans' stripped-down coronavirus relief package as "emaciated," accusing his colleagues in a Thursday letter of only trying to "give the appearance of action."

Why it matters: Talks broke down between Democrats and the White House before Congress left for August recess last month, but Schumer's comments indicate a deal may be hard to come by even when the Senate returns next week.

  • Senate Republicans hope to pass a "skinny" coronavirus relief package that would include some expanded unemployment benefits, a PPP extension and funding for the U.S. Postal Service.
  • While it would lay a marker for Republicans, who have yet to pass anything for the next round of stimulus, it's likely to be a non-starter with Democrats in both houses who have continually pushed for something more expansive.

What he's saying: Schumer said Republicans in the Senate "have been 'on pause'" in combatting the pandemic and accused Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) of "planning another round of partisan games."

  • "Democrats have negotiated in good faith and we have offered to meet our Republican counterparts in the middle, but the White House has refused to make any significant compromise."
  • "Republicans may call their proposal 'skinny,' but it would be more appropriate to call it 'emaciated.' Their proposal appears to be completely inadequate and, by every measure, fails to meet the needs of the American people."
  • "We should strive for, and hope we can achieve, another comprehensive, bipartisan bill that meets the moment facing our nation."

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.