Here’s a Peek at a Conservative Wish List for the Next Coronavirus Bill

For indispensable reporting on the coronavirus crisis and more, subscribe to Mother Jones’ newsletters.Hugh Hewitt says the next coronavirus rescue package is going to be massive:
Congress will definitely pass a “Phase Four” relief package simply because it must. The measure is likely to be the most significant legislation by any Congress since the statutes authorizing the draft in 1940 and the Lend-Lease Act the following year.
Hugh Hewitt! Of all people, he’s one of the last that I’d expect to support a gigantic rescue bill. However, it turns that this is because he wants the bill to:
Recapitalize the defense industrial base.
Revive the manufacture of key pharmaceuticals and personal protective equipment.
Resurrect the nuclear power industry.
Preempt state tort law concerning liability for coronavirus-related claims of negligence and intentional injury.
Make sure that all high-tech companies are an “open book” to US intelligence when it comes to China. “There aren’t any neutrals anymore. Both sides of the fence cannot be played.”
Provide lots of state and local aid, but attach strings in order to achieve conservative goals.
Whew! That’s a helluva list. “Democrats will have their own wish list,” Hewitt says, and I’d love to see what the progressive counterpart to this might be. Medicare for All, card check, and a massive climate R&D program? It would have to be something big, that’s for sure.

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