Thank you Greg Abbott.  This is the first smart move by a state leader recognizing the realities of the system at hand.  Texas Governor Greg Abbott has signed a waiver allowing restaurants to sell their bulk food directly to retail customers.

Amid all of the reactionary decisions by elected officials, this is a smart, and temporary move that can take pressure off the retail supply chain.  Hopefully others will follow.

Leadership is often about recognizing the unique landscape and taking ‘outside the box’ action in response to current conditions.  Greg Abbott recognizes there are two distinctly different supply-chains, and this modification can open one distribution valve.

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National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow explains the overall picture of the legislative package as coordinated by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and the White House economic team.   The overall financial package is $6 trillion.  $4 trillion of that amount is federal reserve lending authority in case needed.  $2 trillion is direct economic assistance.

Democrats are still attempting to add their K-Street pet projects (foreign aid grants, performing arts contributions, union payoffs, election modifications, funds to expand abortion services, subsidies for wind farms, restrictions on cow flatulence, funds for Hollywood productions, airline emissions, turtle training classes and various social engineering topics) to the spending package. That battle continues….

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Earlier today New York Governor Andrew Cuomo blasted FEMA during a press conference for sending 400 medical ventilators when his state needs 30,000.  WATCH:

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However, in 2015 the New York State Department of Health specifically studied the issue, warned about a critical lack of ventilators during a pandemic, and the New York Governor made a specific decision NOT to order them: [pdf link here]

So Andrew Cuomo is blasting FEMA today for not providing something he choose not to order and prepare for in 2015.  That’s a little bit unfair and hypocritical, no?

Approximately 20,000 to 40,000 New Yorkers are currently arriving in Florida daily as they flee from the epicenter of the most explosive coronavirus outbreak.   However, if the elderly are the most vulnerable; and if isolating the most vulnerable population is the best course of action; and with the largest population of older residents living in Florida; then why are New Yorkers allowed to travel to Florida?

According to data released by Governor DeSantis: Monday saw 190 direct flights from the New York City area into various Florida airports. If 150-200 people average per flight, that’s 28,500 to 38,000 New York metropolitan area residents arriving in Florida today.

In an attempt to mitigate the inbound infection spread, today Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order requiring all arriving New York and New Jersey residents to be screened upon arrival and self-quarantine immediately after arriving in the state.   Not sure how policing compliance is possible.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Monday he is issuing an executive order mandating that anyone arriving on a flight from New York City and the surrounding area submit to self-quarantine for two weeks as he tries to avoid issuing a statewide shutdown similar to other states.

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To understand the purpose and specific need of the latest Executive Order CTH can share a familiar analogy to help better conceptualize the issues.

There are several supply chains that are being affected by the coronavirus mitigation effort; two specific sectors involve healthcare products and food distribution. Today’s executive order targets both.

As a network of U.S. manufacturing continues to increase the production of healthcare products, masks, shields, ventilators and medicines; any hoarding or pricing opportunism around those items is obviously a matter of great interest for overall public health.

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There are many people, many voters, simply stunned at how the Democrats are trying to use the COVID-19 economic emergency to add unrelated ideological elements to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.

Senator Tom Cotton walks through some of the items the Democrats are demanding before they will allow economic relief to U.S. companies and workers. MUST WATCH:

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Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin discusses the steps the White House is taking to mitigate economic pain and suffering being felt by businesses and workers.  The U.S. economy has essentially been shut down In an effort to deal with the spread of the Chinese coronavirus; there are worries that parts of the economy will never recover if a rescue package doesn’t quickly reach businesses and workers. [Important Conversation]

Mnuchin helped design a relief bill to protect the economy and U.S. workers, and ensure the economy is able to restart quickly. Democrats are blocking proactive the emergency bill to take advantage of the crisis with demands unrelated to economic needs.

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Nancy Pelosi’s legislative stunt has revealed that the coronavirus panic is likely a well coordinated political stunt.  If it were as real as claimed, Pelosi wouldn’t have the time to organize a political spending scheme…. ergo, it’s more likely a planned hoax to bring the economy to a standstill and create a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Yes, people are unfortunately sick, but the reality is shutting the U.S. economy for a prolonged period of time will likely kill more people than any virus.  With that in mind, President Trump takes a bold step and puts a deadline for a decision.  All Caps:

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Man-o-man, this is some high-stakes poker playing, and it’s the United States economy on the table.   Mitch McConnell is going to put S.3548 The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or the CARES Act, back on the senate floor at 9:45am ET tomorrow, 15 minutes after the stock market starts collapsing.

[Read Bill Here]

[Link To Tweet]

Sweet Baby Jesus… I can’t remember ever seeing anything like this.  A $20 trillion U.S. economy, and tens-of-millions of American jobs and businesses on the line….  And McConnell is calling Pelosi’s bluff.    P.U.B.L.I.C.L.Y!

Talk about seriously high stakes politics.   Yikes.  McConnell is going to make every democrat senator vote again to close debate and advance the bill; putting them on record for negotiating a deal and then walking away from the deal they assembled.

I would imagine Senator McConnell has talked to President Trump about this….

Over the past three days a bipartisan group of senators, not leadership, constructed a $1.6 Trillion emergency aid package to rescue the U.S. economy and American workers.  The package had the support of Mitch McConnell. It is called The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or “CARE Act“. [READ BILL S.548 HERE]

However, at the last minute House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, having returned from her House recess vacation sipping cocktails poolside, instructed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to crush the senate effort.

Power hungry Pelosi sees an opportunity to use the looming economic crisis as leverage for selecting winners & losers amid the K-Street lobbying community.  Donors for Democrats will be rewarded; supporters of Republicans, not-so-much.  This is DC at it’s worst and Pelosi isn’t going to lose another opportunity.  It’s the same process she used in ’08/’09.

“Twice in one lifetime… How blessed am I?”

Senator Schumer did as he was instructed.  The relief bill did not pass cloture (60 votes needed), and the three-day effort collapsed.  Immediately the DOW futures dropped 5%.

WASHINGTON DC – “I want everybody to fully understand if we aren’t able to act tomorrow, it will be because of our colleagues on the other side continuing to dicker when the country expects us to come together and address the problem,” McConnell said on the floor. He added that over the last 48 hours there were bipartisan discussions among “regular members of the Senate, not in the Leadership office, not in the speaker’s office for goodness sakes.”

“She’s the Speaker of the House, not the Speaker of the Senate,” McConnell added. “We were doing just fine until that intervention.”  (more)

There are two main points Pelosi is targeting.  First, because COVID-19 creates a MASSIVE SPENDING opportunity, Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants to include the elimination of college debt, literally wipe out student loans – which ironically and intentionally were created under Obamacare, in the coronavirus bill.

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