Saved by the Stimulus?
In a stunning bipartisan move, Congress passed the CARES Act, a $2.2 trillion dollar bill to help combat economic strain caused by the ‘Rona. Here are the high level details of the legislation:
Every citizen making under $75K annually will receive a $1200 stimulus check. Those who earn over $75K, but less than $99K are also eligible to receive checks of a smaller amount. If you make over $99K, sorry homie. You gets no stimulus check. You can use this calculator to get a sense of what you might get.
For those who’ve been laid off or furloughed, federal unemployment insurance will be available on top of whatever is provided by your state. Under this bill, you’d be eligible to receive up to $600 weekly.
There will be a 6-month reprieve from federal student loan payments. If you need a break from Sallie Mae, she’s also providing relief options. If you have student loans through a different lender, check with them directly to see what assistance they offer.
All Coronavirus testing and treatment will be covered.
There’s also a ton of money going to hospitals, small businesses, large corporations, and universities. Howard, for example, gets 13 Ms.
Get more specifics of the bill here. If you want to make an informed decision on whether this is really all that it’s cracked up to be, here’s a critique to help you form your own opinion.
Trump this Week…
Donnie has been a busy man between frequent press conferences and keeping his Twitter current. Here are some highlights:
A few days ago, he said he wanted the country to reopen by Easter. Yesterday, however, he added an additional 30 days to the federal guidelines.
Of all the governors criticizing him, he has a “big problem” with Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer. Guess we can add her to his list of nasty women.
He invoked the Defense Production Act to force GM to step up to the very difficult task of producing ventilators. The very stable genius also doubted states need as many ventilators as they estimate, so it’s unclear whether.
Although Trump thinks he's doing an exceptional job, the real MVP of the week has been Dr. Anthony Fauci, who’s constantly clarifying and correcting Trump's statements (much to the chagrin of the MAGA coalition).
But What About the Rent?
While mortgage payments have been deferred by the big banks, many cities and states also are postponing evictions in an effort to help. Don’t take the bait blindly though. Some financial advisors are warning that this may not be exactly what we think it is. Here are some useful things to know when asking a landlord or lender to go easy on you during this time.
Congress, What’s Good? Maybe they’re worn out from the aforementioned stimulus bill or just social distancing? They haven’t posted any hearings or upcoming bills for this week.
2020 Watch
More states are considering expanding their vote by mail programs. It’s not a bulletproof solution though and is known to negatively impact Black voters.
The coronavirus is putting Joe Biden to work.
Bernie says he is still down to have a debate in April, but what would that even look like?
Who are the people being asked to participate in these approval polls? Over 50% of respondents in a recent poll approve of Trump’s pandemic response. While this looks promising, it still may not be a good enough indicator for how people will vote in November.
Around the Diaspora
The African Development Bank is making a strong attempt to help African economies survive the coronavirus by launching a $3 billion social bond.
The Cayman Islands' government is taking extreme measures to combat COVID-19 that appear to be working.
Brazil is preserving the cultural legacy of its Quilombos, which are settlements created by Africans who escaped slavery. As for how their leader is responding to COVID-19, he’s downplaying the potential impact. Sound familiar?
Culture that Pops
In a very fitting gesture, Future is using his FreeWishes Foundation to donate masks to hospitals and patients.
Stephon Marbury is also working hard to deliver 10 million masks to his hometown of New York City.
Itching to stay active during the quarantine? Here are some fitness gurus to follow to get your home workouts popping.
Black-ish creator Kenya Barris is headed to Netflix with yet another spin off (kinda) called #BlackAF. Despite it still being based on his life, it appears to be a bit more raw. The show premieres on April 17.