May 6, 2020 Issue, Page 4 of 8

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Page 4 The Elk City News, Elk City, Oklahoma ‘Wednesday, May 6, 2020 With ‘Paycheck Protection,’ we Opinion Page “ElkCituNews Serving Western Oklahoma since 1901 see the limits of federal help Coronavirus testing is By The Dallas Morning time to debate the finer de- thorized another tranche of likely that more money News funding for the Paycheck good for workers and tails, nor was there time to would reach those for whom There’s a hard reality that figure out how it all might Protection Program. it was intended. is rolling out of the coverage play out. This was an emer- Our point here isn’t to side the economy of the federal government’s gency, and what was needed with those turning against Now, the action that was taken is leaving many with a Paycheck Protection Pro- was a strong government in- larger companies that cap- By The Baltimore Sun gram. tervention enacted into law tured a share of the money bitter taste for how the pro- Samuel R. Wilson Jr., a lifelong resident of southern And that reality is not that immediately. they were legally able to ap- gram was run initially. Even Delaware, thinks it’s a “dumb idea” for his state to test as it has helped millions, it companies such as Ruth’s At the time, we noted that ply for. Nor is our point to workers at local chicken processing plants for the COV- Chris Steak House got mon- even the feds couldn’t spend justify large companies tak- has left many others wonder- ID-19 virus. ey that they are now giving trillions both quickly and ef- ing the money. ing why the money ran out This observation, reported by the The News Journal, was made Tuesday during an online meeting of the Sus- back. fectively. Alas, what we got Rather it is to point to before help reached them. Nor is that reality the was a government program something bigger that seems That bitterness was likely sex County Council, on which Wilson has served since hard-to-accept fact that enti- that directed money to mil- to be lost in the debates over inevitable because the pri- 2008. And why does Councilman Wilson, a farmer him- ties such as Ashford Inc., a lions but may also widen forgivable loans. self, think it’s unwise to test plant workers for a disease Dallas-based hotelier that’s the gulf between average There are times when only vate economy is larger than that has killed more than 61,500 Americans to date during a publicly traded company, Americans - many of them the government can act, but even the federal govern- a global pandemic? received $126 million and so either own small businesses those actions have limits ment can sustain for long. Because, he said, positive results will deter others from far says it has no intentions that weren't able to initially and often unforeseen conse- What’s needed for our long- showing up for the job and, ultimately, lead to plant clo- of rebating those funds back get PPP forgivable loans or quences. We’ll have trillions term success is for private sures. to the folks in Washington. who work for such compa- in new debt after all of this employers to create value “Where did (Delaware Gov. John Carney) get the The hard reality about the nies - and those Americans is over. We may also see for customers and for av- bright idea to ... test the poultry workers?” Wilson is program and other govern- who run or work for large, resentment grow within the erage Americans to make quoted as asking during the teleconference. “They’re ment efforts to ride to the well connected firms. That’s ranks of the public regard- decisions that enable them losing millions of dollars because of this dumb idea.” rescue in this crisis is that to say nothing of the well- ing who benefited from one You can hear it for yourself on the Wilmington, Del., even when it comes to the heeled lobbyists. program or another. And in to be self-supporting. We newspaper’s website, delawareonline.com. On the record- federal government, there Of course, it should be the end, what will be key to need philanthropy, we need ing, the councilman is patiently reminded that testing is are limits to what can be surprising to only those who both our prosperity and civic compassion within our gov- part of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Pre- done. live under rocks that larger comity is a form of success ernmental policies and pro- vention guidelines, but he is not persuaded. The health of The $2.2 trillion rescue companies with teams of that’s outside the reach of grams, but what makes all of those essential employees who kill, bleed, defeather, clean package signed into a law a accountants and strong rela- Congress. it possible is a thriving pri- and butcher chickens doesn’t appear to enter his mind. few weeks ago was rushed tionships with banks would We urged Congress to vate economy. Neither does the opportunity to protect the community. through Congress by a de- be well equipped to success- break this relief package There is no getting around His entire argument is based on the financial hardship suf- sire to act quickly, as people fully apply for government- into smaller bills that could get more sunlight. Taking the hard reality that our fered if one or more plants close, and he clearly wants to were losing their jobs in backed loans. the face of the coronavirus Nonetheless, with outrage a little more time to ham- friends in Washington will avoid that at all costs. It’s reassuring to know that this is not the prevailing pandemic. And that’s fair growing out of a realization mer through this legislation not be able to do for Ameri- view in either Delaware or Maryland, where Gov. Larry enough. But the thinking of where the money was ac- could have avoided some of cans what American ingenu- Hogan announced last week that he is working with his then was that there wasn’t tually going, Congress au- this mess and made it more ity can do for our country. counterparts in Delaware and Virginia to improve testing Barr is acting like Trump’s for poultry workers. He identified Salisbury as Maryland’s latest coronavirus hotspot, chiefly because of 262 poultry processing workers who have tested positive for the virus, most of whom commute to out-of-state plants. wingman again instead of The governor further unveiled plans for a testing center for poultry workers at the parking lot of the Arthur W. Per- due Stadium, home to idled Delmarva Shorebirds, as well as an effort to guard against the virus spreading further into poultry processing plants in Salisbury and Hurlock. What’s truly worrisome about Wilson’s thought process is that it reflects a growing desire - expressed frequently but not uniquely by GOP officeholders - to get the na- America’s attorney general tion working again, regardless of the consequences for By Michael McGough, paign was spied on during on the thinnest of suspicions zens.” The statement didn’t Los Angeles Times the investigation of possiblethat, in my view, were insuf- offer any specific examples. the workers on the front lines. It was one thing when CO- In 2013 then-Attorney ties between the campaign ficient to justify the steps Freedom of speech and VID-19 appeared to threaten everyone, it’s another when General Eric H. Holder Jr., organization and Russia. taken.” assembly, like the free exer- the danger is chiefly directed at grocery store clerks, meat asked in an interview if he Barr told a Senate commit- Then came the coronavi- cise of religion, is protected packing plants employees, delivery people and others who would be leaving the Obama tee that “spying did occur.” rus contagion. Barr has made by the U.S. Constitution, and don’t have the luxury of teleconferencing to their jobs, like administration, said that he members of the Sussex County Council. Barr later ordered an in- it clear that he’s in syne with it’s possible to imagine coro- would be staying because vestigation into the origins the president’s impatience Nationwide, poultry plant workers are more likely to be he liked what he was doing, of the FBI’s Russia inves- with restrictions on public navirus restrictions so oner- Latino than white, according to the National Center for ous, discriminatory or open- and “I’m still the president’s tigation by U.S. Attorney gatherings - including curbs Farmworker Health. Would an elected official be nearly as wingman, so I’m there with John Durham of Connecti- recommended by Trump’s ended that a judge might find anxious to deny COVID-19 tests to his own family mem- them unconstitutional. my boy.” cut - even though that issue own administration. Barr bers if they worked in a high-risk environment? What if Some conservatives saw was already being examined has called restrictions “dra- But, given Barr’s history, some were over 60 or had compromised immune systems? in that jocular comment an by Justice Department In- conian” and suggested that his statement looks much But that’s not the circumstance for most members of inadvertent admission that spector General Michael E. they should be relaxed be- more like a political docu- Congress, or for President Donald Trump or for first son- Holder put his loyalty to the Horowitz. Durham's inquiry ginning May 1. ment than the warning of a in-law Jared Kushner who recently declared the U.S. coro- president above his duties has evolved into a criminal Earlier this month, Barr prudent law-enforcement of- navirus response a “great success story” and predicts the to the law. It was an unfair investigation. announced that the Justice ficial. economy will be “rocking” by July. inference, but every attorney Horowitz eventually re- Department was_interven- As a result, even if a situ- These are difficult times. The most recent jobless num- general must contend with ported that the investigation ing in a lawsuit brought by a ation arose in which the bers show another 3.8 million Americans applied for un- suspicions that he’s politi- was opened with sufficient Mississippi church that was Justice Department — had employment benefits last week, which means more than cizing the administration of “predication” (or justifica- ticketed for holding a drive- good cause to challenge a 30 million Americans have lost their jobs in the past seven justice in the service of the tion). Horowitz also said that in worship service. restriction on public gather- weeks. That’s awful. president who appointed his investigation didn’t find On April 27, 10 days after ings, the natural reaction of But unemployment is a circumstance from which one him. “documentary or testimonial Trump had tweeted out calls can recover. Death is not. Federal, state and local govern- many Americans would be Then there’s President evidence that political bias to “liberate” three states ments need to be cautious in their approach to reopening that Barr was acting to serve Donald Trump’s second at- or improper motivation” in- with Democratic governors the president’s “liberation” this nation’s workplaces and follow the best public health torney general, William P. fluenced the opening of the from burdensome _restric- advice including increased screening of the asymptomatic. Barr. Far from acting in a probe. tions, Barr issued a state- agenda - serving, in other That their absence from the processing line might tem- way that would discourage Barr quibbled with that ment urging federal pros- words, as the president’s porarily hamper the chicken nugget supply chain shouldn’t such suspicions, Barr has finding, saying that as he ecutors to “be on the lookout “wingman.” factor into those decisions. Keeping these hardwork- exacerbated them. saw it, the report showed for state and local directives Michael McGough is The ing folks, who often take home $25,000 or less cutting Last year Barr seemed to that “the FBI launched an that could be violating the Los Angeles Times’ senior up broilers, healthy should matter. It’s not only good for second Trump’s complaint intrusive investigation of a constitutional rights and civ- editorial writer, based in them, it’s ultimately good for the economy. that his presidential cam- US. presidential campaign il liberties of individual citi- Washington, D.C. Bonus unemployment benefit is costing jobs and inhibiting business reopenings By Rachel Greszler, The ment provisions and con- With more workers on the fault of their own. Paycheck Protection Pro- will be able to reopen more Heritage Foundation cluded that it will be even sidelines and for longer peri- But it doesn’t make sense gram, mandated paid sick quickly once it’s safe to do Some lawmakers realized more damaging than those ods of time, this will reduce to create a system in which and family leave and the so. that sending an extra $600 prescient lawmakers imag- the nation’s output by up to a majority of Americans can Employee Retention Tax Unfortunately, we've al- per week to everyone who ined. $1.49 trillion between May make more without a job Credit. Keeping workers em- ready heard of employees receives unemployment ben- Over the last four weeks, and September. than by remaining on the ployed, even if they are who are choosing unem- efits would cause problems. about 26 million people In normal times, unem- job. temporarily not working ployment benefits over em- That’s why they tried to cap have filed for unemploy- ployment typically provides Instead of bridging the or working less, is incred- ployment, leaving business benefits at 100% of each ment insurance, bringing the about 50% of previous earn- gap, excessive unemploy- ibly beneficial. For starters, owners unable to provide ment payments will only in- workers’ wages. unemployment rate close to ings. But these are not nor- it means workers can keep the goods and services they crease the breadth and depth They didn’t get the cap. 20%. We estimate that, at mal times. It makes sense to of the economic downturn. their health insurance, And would like to offer. But they were right. the peak of unemployment temporarily increase benefits This bonus benefit threat- if tens of millions of work- Rachel Greszler is a re- Heritage Foundation econ- in May, the extra $600 per because this is a temporary ens to negate much of what ers and millions of employ- search fellow in The Heri- omist Drew Gonshorowski week could be responsible health crisis in which tens Congress has done to try to ers aren’t scrambling to find tage Foundation’s Grover and I have now modeled the for 13.9 million of the to- of millions of workers have keep workers connected to new jobs and hire and train M. Hermann Center for the impact of the “bonus” pav- tal unemplovment claims. lost their iobs through no their emplovers such as the new emplovees. societv Federal Budget.