Halted stimulus talks undercut already ailing airlines and transit systems
Advocates of federal aid to keep 33,000 airline employees on the job lobbied for months, sending thousands of letters and donning protective masks to walk the halls of the Congress. And it appeared to be working, garnering bipartisan backing and support from President Trump, who just last month said: “We’ll be helping the airlines.” It all unraveled Tuesday with a series of tweets. “I have instructed my representatives to stop negotiating until after the election when, immediately after I win, we will pass a major Stimulus Bill that focuses on hard-working Americans and Small Business,” Trump tweeted. “This is a huge disappointment for people who are really hurting,” said Ray LaHood, a former Republican congressman who served as transportation secretary under President Obama, citing “devastating” impacts on aviation and transit systems nationwide. “This is not the right time to be pulling the plug on negotiations … Some of these industries will take years to come back to where they were,” he said. LaHood said talks between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin seemed within reach of the kind of success the two had earlier this year on a series of aid bills. But LaHood said it seems Trump’s chief of staff prevailed on the president to take a harder line this time. “Mark Meadows has kind of carried the tea party agenda for not being willing to spend the kind of money it’s going to take to get our economy moving again,” LaHood said. “That’s where the stalemate has really happened … Apparently, he got to the president on this one.” Even after Congress failed to meet a Sept. 30 deadline for extending support for airlines, backers remained optimistic something would come together. Despite Trump’s tweet, Nicholas E. Calio, CE of Airlines for America, said he remained hopeful that an agreement could be reached. “Time already ran out for US airlines and many of our employees, yet there is a glimmer of hope that our leaders in Washington will act and save these jobs before it’s too late to turn back the clock,” Calio said. “Some US airlines may be able to reinstate employees if they receive direct payroll assistance from the federal government soon, but that becomes increasingly challenging with each passing day.”<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/imagelibrary/news/hot-topics/2020-10-07/general/halted-stimulus-talks-undercut-already-ailing-airlines-and-transit-systems
https://portal.staralliance.com/imagelibrary/logo.png
Halted stimulus talks undercut already ailing airlines and transit systems
Advocates of federal aid to keep 33,000 airline employees on the job lobbied for months, sending thousands of letters and donning protective masks to walk the halls of the Congress. And it appeared to be working, garnering bipartisan backing and support from President Trump, who just last month said: “We’ll be helping the airlines.” It all unraveled Tuesday with a series of tweets. “I have instructed my representatives to stop negotiating until after the election when, immediately after I win, we will pass a major Stimulus Bill that focuses on hard-working Americans and Small Business,” Trump tweeted. “This is a huge disappointment for people who are really hurting,” said Ray LaHood, a former Republican congressman who served as transportation secretary under President Obama, citing “devastating” impacts on aviation and transit systems nationwide. “This is not the right time to be pulling the plug on negotiations … Some of these industries will take years to come back to where they were,” he said. LaHood said talks between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin seemed within reach of the kind of success the two had earlier this year on a series of aid bills. But LaHood said it seems Trump’s chief of staff prevailed on the president to take a harder line this time. “Mark Meadows has kind of carried the tea party agenda for not being willing to spend the kind of money it’s going to take to get our economy moving again,” LaHood said. “That’s where the stalemate has really happened … Apparently, he got to the president on this one.” Even after Congress failed to meet a Sept. 30 deadline for extending support for airlines, backers remained optimistic something would come together. Despite Trump’s tweet, Nicholas E. Calio, CE of Airlines for America, said he remained hopeful that an agreement could be reached. “Time already ran out for US airlines and many of our employees, yet there is a glimmer of hope that our leaders in Washington will act and save these jobs before it’s too late to turn back the clock,” Calio said. “Some US airlines may be able to reinstate employees if they receive direct payroll assistance from the federal government soon, but that becomes increasingly challenging with each passing day.”<br/>
