On the recordDecember 1, 2020
I am here on the floor today to, once again, talk about the need for this Senate and this Congress to pass legislation to deal with the COVID-19 crisis. I think we have to do this now before the end of the year--certainly, before we leave the Congress to go back home for the holiday recess. We just got back from a weeklong recess for Thanksgiving, and all the Members of this body--all of them--had to have seen what I saw, which is an up-close look at the crisis that is upon us. In Ohio, our daily new cases are four times what they were just 1 month ago--four times. I see the numbers every single day, and they are discouraging. And it is not just new cases. It is more people hospitalized. It is more people in the ICU units. It is more people, tragically, who are counted among the fatalities. This morning, I tried to call a friend of mine who is in the hospital in Columbus, OH. He is there because of COVID. And I am just thinking probably of the people watching tonight, most either have had COVID themselves or have a friend or a family member who have had COVID. This friend was unable to talk to me because he had taken a turn for the worse. His organs were starting to malfunction. He had slipped into unconsciousness. I was able to speak to his wife. I told her, of course, that he is in our prayers. But I also told her that he is in my thoughts as we look at whether we should do something more here at the Federal level to help with the coronavirus pandemic.…
