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Huh Moscow Mitch? Why The Sudden Change In Tune On Fourth “Stimilus” Bill?

3 min read
A billboard in Horse Cave, Ky., referring to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. as Moscow Mitch has been erected on northbound I-65 Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

First Moscow Mitch raised one of his terrapin legs and tried to piss all over Speaker Pelosi and her plans for a fourth “stimilus” bill for the coronavirus pandemic, but, the next day, the Satanic turtle is having a change of heart on this fourth plan.  Granted, Moscow Mitch is still telling Pelosi to chill somewhat, but -hang on to your drinks — he wants this fourth bill to focus on healthcare.

What the hell is going on here?

Oh wait.  I may have an idea why Moscow Mitch may be trying to turbo charge on his usual constipated turtle routine when it comes to bills favored by Democrats.  In one word, unemployment.

For those of you not dipping into your grey poupon and crowding onto the golf courses, there were some appalling national unemployment numbers that made an unwelcome appearance.  Seems the “miracle” of the Trump economy is over.  The true extent of the economic pain felt by Americans is now an ongoing event, and it seems it will last for several months if not years.

The national unemployment numbers of possibly tens of millions being thrown out of work is a nightmare for Trump’s reelection campaign.  But more importantly, it seems to be making it difficult for Moscow Mitch’s main objective:  keeping his job as Senate Majority Leader.  Besides threatening fellow Republican senators in purplish states, a wrecked economy might — and I emphasize MIGHT- hurt Moscow Mitch’s chances of reelection.

Hear me out for a minute on that score.  I am not smoking Kentucky’s major export, but there is a faint chance that the coronavirus pandemic and the upcoming economic depression may make Moscow Mitch vunerable.  It does not guarantee anything though.

Under normal circumstances, Moscow Mitch would be sitting pretty.  To be honest, Amy McGrath may have money to burn because she is the Democratic Establishment favorite, but she is still a weak candidate.  Granted, she had been running ads that got under Mitch’s skin, but she pulled back and didn’t want to seem too political while we are in a pandemic.

Not Mitch though.  He is running an ad claiming he was the leader who got the 2.2 trillion dollar stimilus bill passed.  Moscow Mitch is saying that he is the leader that Kentucky needs at a time like this and other lies.

This was all before that 6.6 million in new unemployment claims popped up this week.  And it was around the time that 49,000 new unemployment claims come in for Kentucky alone the previous week.  And now they had another 113,000 new unemployment claims this week.  Now, those were under counts of the real number of unemployed because the state system was overwhelmed the last two weeks.  But I did some number crunching, and if my calculations are correct, current unemployment in the state of Kentucky went from 4.2% to 12%.

There have not been unemployment numbers that bad in Kentucky even during the Great Recession.  I am reasonably sure you have to go back to the Great Depression to find numbers that high.  And economists think those numbers will only get worse.  

Think about that.  Unemployment not seen nor felt for over 80 years in this state.  How is Moscow Mitch to spin that?

Oh, the state has finally drifted over to the redzone.  Most Kentuckians view themselves as conservatives, and a lot of their identity is defined as “white man in charge and damn all others!”  This is an extremely powerful obstacle for any Democrat to overcome, especially when running for national office in Kentucky.

But if the white men in charge are telling the poorer white men to go without money, food, shelter, and healthcare during a viral pandemic, are the bonds of white idenity going to hold together?

The cynic in me says never underestimated the stupidity of racism.  But when put to an extreme test of life or death?  Shrugs.

I know one thing.  Moscow Mitch does not want it to ever get to that point.  Otherwise, he wouldn’t even “entertain” a stimilus bill at all, let alone one dealing with healthcare.  The very same healthcare he is trying to eliminate for over half million Kentuckians.

Not normal times indeed.

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