It was only a matter of time. Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) and Ben McAdams (D-Utah) became the first known members of Congress to test positive for coronavirus, raising fears about the deadly virus spreading through the halls of the Capitol. Lawmakers who closely interacted with the infected individuals are now under self-quarantine, including House Minority Whip Steve Scalise and several other members of the GOP whip team. Both Diaz-Balart and McAdams voted on the floor last Friday with hundreds of their colleagues and started experiencing symptoms Saturday, and there’s no telling how many other people they may have interacted with — though the Capitol physician is attempting to map it out.
The pair of positive tests underscores the predicament facing Congress: lawmakers need to be in the Capitol to pass legislation to fight the pandemic, but being clustered together is a huge health risk for members, who tend to be older and more vulnerable. This is only going to increase pressure on leadership to cancel in-person voting. Earlier this week, a bipartisan group of over 50 lawmakers sent a letter to House leadership urging them to enact a remote voting plan, per CNN, arguing that Congress must hold itself to the same standards it's asking of other Americans. “In. Person. Voting. Should. Be. Reconsidered,” Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D-Fla.) tweeted last night. “For the safety of our communities, during this emergency, we must be able to legislate from our districts.”
But so far, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have rebuffed those calls. They did announce new steps to promote better social distancing during votes, while House lawmakers won’t return until the next coronavirus bill is ready to vote on. But the nature of the job makes it nearly impossible for members to practice social distancing, and the number of quarantines — and cases — is only likely to climb. What if the GOP’s whip team is still under quarantine when they vote on the next coronavirus bill? At what point does legislative business become impossible to conduct in person? It’s all just another reminder of how the coronavirus is truly a crisis like no other for Congress. Much more from Kyle: https://politi.co/33y9OYC.
NPR got a recording of Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina privately warning a small, well-heeled audience about coronavirus three weeks ago.
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