Cuomo Criticizes New CDC Guidelines
Yesterday, Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) gave remarks on newly updated guidelines from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) regarding COVID-19 testing.
According to the new guidelines, people who have recently come into contact with COVID-19 patients do not necessarily need to get tested themselves. In his remarks, Cuomo called the new guidelines irresponsible, fearing that they could hinder our efforts to control the spread.
“I’ve spoken to health experts from around the globe,” said Cuomo. “None of them will say that this makes any sense from a health point of view. The only plausible rationale is they want fewer people taking tests because, as the President has said, if we don’t take tests you won’t know that people are COVID-positive and the number of COVID-positive people will come down. Yes, that is true. That is his policy of “deny the problem.” If you don’t take your temperature, you won’t know that you have a fever. Yes, that is true. But it totally violates public health standards and rationale and just fosters his failed policy of denial.”
Johnson Recognizes Women’s Equality Day
Yesterday, Council Speaker Corey Johnson (D-Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen) released a statement in recognition of Women’s Equality Day.
On Aug. 26, 1920, the U.S. ratified the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote nationwide. Yesterday marked the 100th anniversary of that milestone.
“ Women were not simply handed the right to vote but fought for it,” said Johnson. “New Yorkers are grateful to the trailblazers of the Women’s Suffrage movement for paving the way forward to gender equality. While this achievement benefited white women, the fight for all women’s suffrage—including Black, Latina, Asian/Pacific Islander and Native women—was far from over. The right for all women to vote should have come over 100 years ago, and we still have more work to do. The fight for equality continues, and I am excited to see women leading it.”
Velázquez Leads New York Representatives in Calling for Higher Education Funding from Senate
Last Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-LES, Brooklyn, Queens) and several of her colleagues in the House called for more relief funding for higher education in the next COVID-19 relief bill.
In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Velázquez and her peers called attention to the crises that colleges across the nation are facing right now. In the wake of the pandemic, several colleges have had to lay off thousands of faculty members. To address the problem and prevent further layoffs, the letter recommends the allocation of $915 billion in emergency relief.
“Without this significant federal assistance, local governments such as New York City will be forced to balance their budgets on the backs of students and teachers,” reads the letter. “It is vital that this emergency funding is included in the next Senate package to save hundreds of thousands of jobs and help avert devastating cuts to funding for public education.”
Read the full letter here.
Maloney Endorses Ed Markey for Senate
Yesterday, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens) officially announced her endorsement for U.S. Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) for re-election.
Maloney and Markey have a history of collaboration. In 2019, they were lead sponsors of the Gun Violence Prevention Research Act, which would provide the CDC with $50 million per year to study gun safety and violence prevention. Ultimately, they secured $25 million in gun violence research funding in the latest annual spending package.
“I’m grateful to Ed for his visionary leadership, and energized by his passion and unfailing commitment to serving the people of Massachusetts and our country,” said Maloney. “He has lifted up causes like the Green New Deal and the Green New Deal for Public Housing, both of which I’m proud to co-sponsor in the House, and which will bring transformational change to how we confront the climate crisis and housing justice. And just last year, we worked together to push through more than 20 years of Congressional inaction and secured $25 million in funding to study gun violence as the public health crisis it is. I am so proud to endorse him for re-election.”
