TURNING NOW TO YOUR
COMMUNITY FOCUS TODAY. WE'RE
CHECKING IN WITH A MEMBER OF
OUR FEDERAL DELEGATION. U.S.
SENATOR SHELDON WHITEHOUSE. HE
IS JOINING US LIVE VIA ZOOM.
SENATOR, THANKS FOR JOINING US
TODAY.
GOING TO BE WITH YOU.
THANKS FOR HAVING LET'S FIRST
START WITH THE CONVERSATIONS
AROUND GUN REFORM AND GUN
RIGHTS AFTER THESE 2 MASS
SHOOTINGS IN THE SPAN OF A
WEEK. JUST YESTERDAY, SENATOR
DURBIN SAID, QUOTE, KEEPING
FIREARMS OUT OF THE HANDS OF
CONVICTED FELONS AND MENTALLY
UNSTABLE. PEOPLE SHOULD BE
SOMETHING EVERYONE AGREES ON.
THAT'S THE END OF HIS QUOTE.
WE KNOW IT IS NOT THAT SIMPLE.
SO WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE
SENATE RIGHT NOW.
WELL, THE MOMENT WE'RE IN
THE TRADITIONAL AFTER MASSACRE
DEMOCRATS JOINED VERY HARD TO
TRY TO FIND A WAY TO MAKE SOME
IMPROVEMENTS IN OUR CURRENT
BASICALLY RALLYING AROUND THE
LAG AND REFUSING TO A
COMPROMISE THERE WAS SOME
YEARS AGO. REMEMBER THE WHERE
GUN VOTING DEMOCRATIC SENATOR
JOE MANSION. JOINED UP VERY
CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN
THEORY IS A BIPARTISAN REFORMS
AND THOSE GOT TAKING APART.
UNDER POLITICAL PRESSURE AND
NOW ARE NOT VIABLE EVEN THOUGH
THEY HAVE BEEN VIABLE JUST A
FEW YEARS AGO. SO IT'S A REAL
LARGE IT IS PROBABLY A
SITUATION THAT'S GOING TO TAKE
PUBLIC PRESSURE TO GET THAT'S
THE BIG MOMENTS TO BE ABLE TO
ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING YOUR FIX
THE BILL MR.
SENATOR, I WANT TO SHIFT
GEARS A LITTLE BIT. YOU SENT A
LETTER TO ATTORNEY GENERAL
MERRICK GARLAND ABOUT THE FBI
PROBE INTO ALLEGED MISCONDUCT
BY NOW SUPREME COURT JUSTICE
BRETT KAVANAUGH CALLING THAT
INVESTIGATION, QUOTE,
POLITICALLY CHRIS CONSTRAINED
AND PERHAPS SAKE ONE. OH, HAVE
YOU RECEIVED ANY RESPONSE FROM
THE A G.
NOT YET. I THERE 4 SEPARATE
QUESTIONS AND THEN DISAPPEARED
OBSERVATION IN THAT LETTER.
AND I SUSPECT IT'S GOING TO
TAKE THEM SOME TIME TO SORT
THROUGH PROVIDE ANSWERS. WHEN
I SPOKE TO THE ATTORNEY
GENERAL IN OUR HEARINGS IN
DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL
NOMINEE. AND WHEN I SPOKE TO
THE FBI DIRECTOR AND THEY ALL
AGREED THEY WOULD BREAK DOWN
THE STONE WALL THAT WE HAVE
SEEN BETWEEN US AND ALL THIS
INFORMATION. AND LET ME TRY TO
GET SOME ANSWERS TO THESE
LONG, LONG PENDING QUESTIONS.
AND SENATOR STIMULUS
PAYMENTS TO THE AMERICAN
RESCUE PLAN. THEY CONTINUE
RARE ROUND WENT OUT JUST TODAY
IT'S TIED TO THAT ALMOST
2 TRILLION DOLLAR RECOVERY
PLAN. HOW DO WE AS A COUNTRY
RECOVER FROM THE COST LIKE
THAT OF THE RECOVERY PLAN.
WELL, I.
EVIDENCE THAT WE HAVE FROM
PEOPLE WHO ARE SMARTER THAN I
ABOUT MACROECONOMICS AND ALL
OF THAT LIKE OUR SECRETARY.
THE TREASURE JANET YELLEN IS
THE WHEN THE ECONOMY IS HEADED
INTO A PROBLEM. LIKE WE HAVE
HAD A REALLY MASSIVE PROBLEM
WITH FAMILIES WAY BEHIND ON
RENT WAY BEHIND ON MORTGAGE
PAYMENTS. WAY BEHIND BASIC
UPKEEP AND MAINTENANCE AND IN
MANY CASES IN DIRE ECONOMIC
CIRCUMSTANCES THAT CAN DRAG
THE COUNTRY DOWN INTO A VERY,
VERY BAD ECONOMIC SITUATION.
WHERE IS THE SUDDEN REALLY
STRONG SURGE OF SUPPORT FOR
THOSE FAMILIES CAN BOOST US
ACROSS THE CHASM AND GET INTO
A, YOU KNOW, GOOD BRIGHT
ECONOMIC FUTURE AND THAT'S THE
FEAR YOU SO YOU YOU'RE PAYING
NOW FOR THE BOOST THAT COMES
ONCE THAT MONEY HITS THE
STREETS AND PEOPLE HAVE THE
ABILITY TO RESTORE THEIR
FAMILY LIFE AND GET THEMSELVES
BACK ON THEIR FEET AGAIN.
SPEAKING OF GOOD AND
BRIGHT. YOU HAVE A BILL THAT
WOULD MAKE DAYLIGHT SAVING
TIME PERMANENT. WE TALK A LOT
ABOUT THANK WE TALK A LOT
ABOUT THE TIME CHANGE THE
DESIRE FOR MORE SUNSHINE. BUT
SENATOR LEVEL WITH US. HOW
LIKELY IS IT THAT THIS IS
REALLY GOING TO CHANGE.
WELL, WE'LL SEE. WE HAVE
UNTIL NOVEMBER WHEN IT SHIFTS
BACK. AND I THINK, YOU KNOW,
WE WORK BETTER IN CONGRESS ON
DEADLINES. I DON'T KNOW
ANYBODY WHO LOOKS FORWARD TO
THAT DAY WHEN SUDDENLY IT IS
DARK IT FOR SOMETHING IN THE
AFTERNOON BECAUSE THE TIME
SHIFTED BACK AND THEY LOST THE
EVENING LIGHT IN THEIR KIDS
LOST THAT PLAY TIME. SO I
THINK AS WE GET CLOSER TO
NOVEMBER. WE'LL SEE HOW IT
GOES. SHIFT BACK DOES NOT HAVE
A LOT OF FANS AND I'D LIKE TO
SEE IT NEVER HAPPENED. IF WE
CAN PULL IT OFF. IT'S
BIPARTISAN WITH MARCO RUBIO OF
FLORIDA AND MYSELF. I THINK
WE'LL BE ABLE TO GET A LOT OF
OTHER PEOPLE TO SUPPORT
AND SENATOR, JUST QUICKLY
BEFORE WE LET YOU GO, ROUGHLY
2 THIRDS OF RHODE ISLAND'S
COVID-19 RELATED DEATHS HAVE
HAPPENED IN NURSING HOMES. A
VERSION OF THE BILL YOU
INTRODUCED TO HELP NURSING
HOMES HAS BEEN INCLUDED IN THE
AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN. WHAT
SHOULD LOCAL HOMES EXPECT TO
SEE. AND HOW QUICKLY CAN THEY
SEE THAT MONEY.
WELL, IT WILL DEPEND HOW
QUICKLY AGAINST PROCESS
THROUGH WHAT WILL BE IN THE
NEXT FEW MONTHS AND UP TO SEE
THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION WANTS
TO MOVE IT AS QUICKLY AS
POSSIBLE. I THINK THE MOST
IMPORTANT THING THAT THEY MAY
OUTBREAK IN A NURSING HOME. IF
THERE'S A THAT COMES IN THAT
CAUSES, AN OUTBREAK WILL BE
MUCH, MUCH MORE RESOURCES TO
TAKE CARE OF IN A SITUATION IN
WHICH THERE'S REAL RISK TO
PERSONNEL. PERSONNEL ARE
UNABLE TO WORK BECAUSE THEY'VE
BEEN EXPOSED TO COVID COPING
SITUATION. I THINK WILL BE THE
THING WILL HEAD OFF. IT'S
GOING TO BE MOST VALUABLE
SENATOR SHELDON WHITEHOUSE ON
A RANGE OF TOPICS. THIS
AFTERNOON. THANKS MUCH FOR
JOINING US TODAY. AT 4.