The United States Congress has waited too long to hammer out the details on whatever it is they are supposed to be passing: Stimulus or bailout or relief and now that multiple cases have been confirmed they need to self-quarantine in Washington D.C. until they are no longer a danger to the public at large.
Perhaps instead of quibbling over multiple details of this relief package, they should have pared it down to manageable chunks instead of trying to pass an omnibus full of all sorts of pork and pet causes.
Git ‘Er Done
Sometimes just doing what has to be done at the moment is a way to overcome analysis paralysis. Get done what you can agree to and pass that bill, then work on the next thing.
In the world of business, it’s called MVP or minimum viable product. Just get something out the door and keep iterating until you’re finished using Agile [1] methods.
This Is Not A Drill
If the CDC and those who are supposed to know about things like pandemics etc. are to be believed, this is a very rare and unusual case and special measures have been enacted (in some instances, statewide shutdowns, industry shutdowns etc. and possible takeover of manufacturing and supply lines and more that are too extensive to list here) and others need to be authorized immediately.
Instead of quibbling over details of this package, they should pare it down instead of trying to pass an omnibus full of all sorts of pork and pet causes.
Among these measures are a payout to all families to pay bills, lines of credit to small businesses to pay employees and pay bills that will be forgiven if used for those purposes and credit for corporations to pay employees and pay bills.
Evidently, that’s too many details for the Congress to juggle at one time.
Can’t We All Get Along: Stop Playing Politics
Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell R-Ky., complained “All of a sudden, the Democratic leader [Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.] and the speaker of the House [Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.] shows up and we’re back to square one,” and “”So we’re fiddling here, fiddling with the emotions of the American people, fiddling with the markets, fiddling with our health care.” [2]
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the Democrats would “be introducing our own bill.” [3] Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters that “we need a bill that puts workers first, not corporations.”
Took Too Long: People Are Getting Sick. Stay In Washington
Considering that some lawmakers are now infected (Senator Rand Paul, R-Ky.) or have been in close contact with those infected, it may be better for Congress to “self-quarantine.” That is, stay in session, stay away from home, and don’t pass the virus to your constituents.
Pass the legislation in smaller chunks, so there is less contention. What needs to be passed and enacted- well, do what we voted you into Congress to do and get it done.
Stop the games. If this is serious enough for the government to shut down whole industries, then it’s important enough for politicians to work together.
In the future, they might make a note to themselves and maybe act a little faster when time is of the essence. Like, I don’t know, worldwide pandemics perhaps?
Notes:
- ^What is Agile? Answers to a fast & powerful way to maximize ROI. (2020, March 24). Retrieved from https://www.agilest.org/what-is-agile-knowledge-base (go back ↩)
- ^Smith, A., Talbot, H., Tsirkin, J., Lederman, J., & Moe, A. (2020). Coronavirus stimulus bill fails to move forward; McConnell cites ‘obstruction’. NBC News. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/top-democrats-say-they-re-not-yet-ready-sign-coronavirus-n1166021 (go back ↩)
- ^Msnbc. com. (2020). Pelosi on coronavirus relief plan: Democrats will ‘be introducing our own bill’. MSNBC.com. Retrieved from https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/watch/pelosi-on-coronavirus-relief-plan-democrats-will-be-introducing-our-own-bill-81077829536 (go back ↩)
