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Blunt says many Missourians could get $1,000+ from stimulus package

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Congress could pass a rescue plan next week with one or two cash payments for millions of Americans. The package is meant to give the tumbling economy a boost from the coronavirus’s fallout. U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, hopes lawmakers can get it to the president’s desk next week.

Senator Roy Blunt addresses the Missouri House on April 4, 2018 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

“We’re looking somewhere in the $1,000 per adult that makes less than $75,000 as something that they would get one time,” says Blunt. “And then if the economy needs that, maybe three months later we might do that one other time.”

Blunt says Missouri adults with kids at home could get another $500.

“Clearly what we’re trying to do is to do what we can to both stabilize and encourage an economy that’s really got a set of consequences going on and actions going on we haven’t seen before,” says Blunt.

The plan could also include business loans for certain industries getting nailed by the coronavirus, including airlines, hotels and others.

Ford and General Motors are putting the brakes on production at its North American plants through at least March 30. The move – meant to slow the tide of the coronavirus outbreak – will impact thousands of workers at the General Motors plant in the St. Louis suburb of Wentzville and the Ford factory near Kansas City. Blunt says he hopes the companies will be up and running again sooner rather than later.

“There are other places where people have to work – law enforcement, firefighters, first responders, people in hospitals, people in food processing facilities. There’s a broad spectrum of economic challenges here in trying to be sure that the ones that have to function continue to function really is a priority,” says Blunt.

The Ford plant in Claycomo has about 7,200 workers with about 6,900 of those being hourly employees. As for the Wentzville GM plant, it has about 4,100 workers – 2,800 are paid by the hour.

Copyright © 2020 · Missourinet

Blunt proposes to revamp lower Missouri River management

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Missouri U.S. Senators Roy Blunt and Josh Hawley, along with Senators from Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas, want to overhaul the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers’ management of the lower Missouri River. Blunt, a Republican, says their bill introduced this week is designed to reduce flood risk and improve flood protection along the lower river basin. He says last year’s flooding from March through August made for an unbelievable year.

Missouri U.S. Senator Roy Blunt

“We think the Corps can plan better,” he tells Brownfield Ag News. “But we think the Corps needs some direction and some flexibility to be able to plan better and that’s what this legislation would do.”

Blunt says the bill requires the Corps to come up with a project feasibility study and gives it flexibility for any project where the federal share is less than $75 million to be able to move forward more quickly.

Blunt says it lets the Corps look at the southern Missouri River basin as a unique waterway.

“We’re not trying to get into opening the entire plan or needlessly involve our friends north of us on the Missouri River when they don’t need to be involved. Certainly would welcome input from them,” he says.

Blunt says the Corps will have to look at how navigation and flood control can be a bigger priority.

“All of our input from farm families, farm organizations, businesses and communities along the river has been very positive so far and we hope we can continue to move forward in a unified way to get this done,” says Blunt.

Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst applauds the bill and says it is a huge step forward.

By Julie Harker of Brownfield Ag News

Copyright © 2020 · Missourinet

Blunt announces emergency funding bill for coronavirus (VIDEO)

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Senator Roy Blunt says funding help is on the way for the national response to the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Blunt is chairman of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies told fellow senators the coronavirus emergency funding bill is expected to be introduced shortly. He urged Congress to quickly approve emergency funding to ensure the government has the resources needed to continue coronavirus response efforts.

Hawley: House Democrats have given America first purely partisan impeachment

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Missouri U.S. Senators Roy Blunt and Josh Hawley have voted in favor of clearing President Trump of corruption and abuse of power charges. The Senate has found the president not guilty. On the Senate floor, Hawley says impeachment is a pipe dream by Democrats who engineered a train of abuses, distortions and outright lies.

U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley’s official portrait (2020 photo courtesy of Senator Hawley’s office)

“The House Democrats have given us the first purely partisan impeachment in our history,” says Hawley. “We must leave this impeachment circus behind us and ensure that our Constitution is never again abused in this way.”

Hawley says it is time to turn the page.

“When I listen to the people of my state, I don’t hear about impeachment,” says Hawley. “I hear about the problems at home and neighborhood, of family and community, about the loss of faith in our government and about the struggle to find hope for the future.”

In a statement from St. Louis Democratic Congressman Lacy Clay, he says the Senate’s vote was not an exoneration, but a “spineless perpetuation of a dangerous coverup.” He says Senate Republicans fear Donald Trump more than the judgement of history and the will of the American people.

New York Congressman Jerry Nadler, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, says the House will likely subpoena former National Security Advisor John Bolton. Bolton has a book coming out soon that could give key information about Trump’s dealing with Ukraine.

Copyright © 2020 · Missourinet

Bipartisan efforts: Clay and Blunt celebrate NGA groundbreaking (AUDIO)

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Construction is officially underway on a new national geo-intelligence facility in north St. Louis. The $1.7 billion project, known as N2W relocates the National Geospatial-Intelligence agency from west of downtown St. Louis.

Missouri First District Congressman Lacy Clay welcomed the crowd of national, state and local dignitaries at the Nov. 11 groundbreaking:

“Welcome to a historic day at the corner of Jefferson and Cass!” he exclaimed, alluding to a blighted area of town that will be the hub of this headquarters.

In this speech, Clay thanked “his good friend Sen. Roy Blunt…thank you so much for your friendship and your leadership.”

Clay told what he calls “the amazing story of how St. Louis won the competition for the new NGA West headquarters, which will be the largest single federal government investment in St. Louis history.”

Listen to Lacy Clay speech (8:17)

Sen. Blunt also spoke of working closely with city leaders and former Mayor Francis Slay  as he enthusiastically listed the immediate economic benefits to an area that was, according to a local ward leader, “going more and more downhill.”

Listen to Blunt’s speech (6:27)

Blunt says he can envision the area 10 years from now, as support businesses move in and retail grows to meet the demands of thousands of employees and visitors.

“This is a good day to capture in your mind where we are today and where I fully believe we’ll be then. It’s a great day for the intelligence, defense, the geospatial, the overhead architecture defense of the country but its a great day for St. Louis, a great day for jobs, it’s a great day for this community,” he said at the groundbreaking.

 

The City of St. Louis officially transferred the 97 acres of land for the new NGA campus to the U.S. Air Force in December 2018, displacing residents. There have been dissenters, but city and neighborhood leaders welcome the facility as an economic boost to a blighted area. (photo Ashley Byrd)

NGA sign and site in background

 

Missouri U.S. Senators split on vote to keep federal government open

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Congress has passed a bill to keep the federal government open through December 20. U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, supported the measure and Senator Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, opposed it.

The U.S. House passed the proposal on Tuesday.

U.S. Capitol dome courtesy of the U.S. House

The legislation would also include a 3.1% military pay raise, funding for U.S. census efforts and extends controversial surveillance programs to March.

During a press conference on Capitol Hill this week, Blunt says many things are on hold until the funding issue is resolved.

“Defense is critical, but there are lots of other things in this appropriations process that are waiting to see if we’re going to fund the government, at what level we’re going to fund the government, and whether we’re going to move toward the future or just wait for the future come to us,” says Blunt.

Blunt says the National Institute of Health needs funding for important research, like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

“The one percent of that amount that we put into research isn’t nearly as effective if you get it three months into the year as it would be if you got it at the first of the year. It’s even less effective if you get it five months into the year,” says Blunt.

President Donald Trump signed the proposal shortly after.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Blunt says trade dispute has hurt China’s economy more than America’s

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U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, believes the trade dispute with China will be resolved, but says the belief that trade would change China will likely never materialize. Blunt says both the U.S. and China have reasons to sign a new trade agreement.

Blunt says trade dispute has hurt China’s economy more than America’s

“I don’t think we’re ever going to get back to where we were with China a decade ago when there was a sense that this was going to be smooth-sailing and the Chinese economy and their view of individual freedom was developing so rapidly that, before you knew it, we’d all be functioning the same way,” Blunt says in an interview with St. Joseph affiliate KFEQ. “I think we now see that’s not likely to happen. President Xi is president for life.”

Blunt insists the trade dispute has hurt the Chinese economy more than the American economy. He says China, because of its communist form of government, can better weather economic hardships than the United States.

“They can tolerate more unhappiness in their system, but nobody likes to tolerate unhappiness,” Blunt says. “So, President Xi should want to do this. President Trump should want to do this. I think we will see some things happen there, but not everything that probably we need to see happen and would eventually want to see happen.”

Blunt says the optimistic outlook many U.S. leaders had that open trade would create an open China just hasn’t happened and likely won’t happen.

One trade agreement has been reached, but is pending Congressional approval.

Blunt is optimistic Congress will approve the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which is touted as vital to Missouri agriculture as well as business.
Blunt says it might seem odd, but the move by House Democrats to investigate and possibly impeach President Donald Trump could well pave the way for approval of the USMCA.

“The impeachment votes in the House make it even more likely that the Speaker’s going to decide that the 30 or 40 members that are going to have the hardest time casting that vote are the same 30 or 40 members that have the most need to have a vote on USMCA,” according to Blunt. “I think we have a real chance to get that done.”

Blunt holds out hope Congress will take up and pass the trade agreement before the end of the year.

Meanwhile, public impeachment hearings involving President Trump begin today.

By Brent Martin of Missourinet affiliate KFEQ in St. Joseph