Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on the Senate floor on Monday that the Democrats are putting American lives at risk by delaying emergency legislation to address the coronavirus outbreak’s toll on Americans and the U.S. economy.
“As of this morning worldwide, there have been 16,381 deaths, so that’s — I’m sorry,” Cruz said. “That’s the number now. This morning, it was only 15,308.”
“That means today, while the Democrats have been blocking this bill, 1,073 additional people died,” Cruz said. “In the United States, as of this morning, there were 471 deaths reported due to coronavirus. As of right now, it’s 573.”
“That means today, 102 Americans died while the Democrats were blocking consideration of this bill,” Cruz said.
“In Texas, as of this morning, there have been eight deaths,” Cruz said. “Now there are nine.”
“One Texan died while half this chamber refused to show up and do their job,” Cruz said.
“There is a time for political disagreements,” Cruz said. “There is a time for policy disagreements.”
“I am no stranger to robust political and policy disagreements,” Cruz said. “But we are in the midst of a global pandemic.”
“People are dying,” Cruz said. “People are suffering.”
“It is not a time to play games,” Cruz said. “It is time to stand for the men and women.”
“It is time to stand for jobs,” Cruz said. “It is time to help protect people’s lives.”
On Monday, Democrats blocked for the second time in 24 hours a bill that would have provided immediate economic relief to American workers and businesses.
The Senate blocked a motion to cloture to advance the coronavirus package for debate. The motion failed, with 49 senators in favor of the motion and 46 against the measure.
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