The Great American Comeback
In case you missed it, I wrote an op-ed in the Bryan County News this week discussing the Great American Comeback. Click here to read more. 

The Great American Comeback

We were in the midst of the most robust economy in our history and unemployment was at historic lows when the coronavirus pandemic swept across the world. Pro-growth policies like lower taxes enacted in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act were working.

However, despite decisive action by President Trump and the Administration, the Chinese government’s inadequate response, lack of information sharing, and the World Health Organization’s failures caused COVID-19 to shutdown America. As a result, beyond the devastating health impacts, the livelihoods of many hard-working Americans have fallen victim to the virus due to no fault of their own.

As businesses across the nation were shuttered, Congress acted to pass four separate relief packages providing relief and funding to support our country and economy.

A critical piece of this relief was the creation of the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses. More than 99 percent of businesses are small businesses in the United States and they are the backbone of our economy.

The Paycheck Protection Program was designed to help small businesses keep their workforce employed during the pandemic. We wanted to make sure hardworking Americans still received a paycheck during the pandemic while ensuring there were jobs to go back to as the economy began to reopen.

The program works by providing forgivable loans to small businesses as long as the money is used for things like payroll, rent and utilities. We also propped up the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program that provides economic relief to businesses facing temporary hardships.

Throughout the pandemic, I visited with businesses in the First District who were using the program. Skippers’ Fish Camp in Darien, Clay’s Sapelo Station in Townsend, Robbie Roberson Ford in Waycross, and All Things Chocolate and More in Richmond Hill are examples of great businesses in the First District who used the Paycheck Protection Program to bring their employees back on to the payroll.

According to the Small Business Administration, more than 136,000 small businesses in Georgia have received a Paycheck Protection Program loan totaling nearly $14 billion in assistance.

This program has been a lifeline for many small businesses, and coupled with Governors like Brian Kemp taking bold actions to reopen state economies, we are starting to experience the Great American Comeback. We’re seeing American businesses reopening, people are going back to work, and the economy is revving up again. The stock markets have erased many of the losses experienced during the pandemic and have hit record highs.

The unemployment rate was the highest since the Great Depression only a few months ago and the May jobs report stumped all economic forecasts, showing the economy adding millions of jobs and the unemployment rate dropping. Some economists had predicted that the country would lose another 7.5 million jobs. Instead, we saw the addition of 2.5 million jobs. This includes jobs in construction, hospitality and leisure. All areas that are important in Southeast Georgia.

Make no mistake, we have a long way to go, but this is an incredible display of what we as Americans can accomplish when we work together. The American spirit has shown through the pandemic and continues to be apparent in every town and city across the country.

As President Trump recently said, “we’re going to have the strongest economy in the world. We almost are there now. We had the strongest economy anywhere in the world, and now we’re going to have an economy that’s even stronger.”

THIS WEEK ON BUDDY'S BRIEFING
This week on Buddy's Briefing we discuss my cosponsorship of the Justice Act, President Trump's executive order on policing in America, and more. 



Happy father's day!
Happy Father's Day! Being a dad and grandad is the greatest gift. 



from our nation's capitol
Monday, June 8, 2020:  After our daily all-staff conference call, I head to the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center on Hutchinson Island where, along with other elected and business leaders, I welcome Marcia Lee Kelly, the President and CEO of the 2020 Republican National Convention.  Savannah, along with Jacksonville, FL, and Nashville, TN, is being considered as an alternative site for the 2020 Convention if the event is pulled from Charlotte, N.C.  After a great tour of the world class facilities at the Trade Center, I head to 34th Street in Savannah where I visit the Savannah Care Center, a family planning center that offers abortion alternative services as well as many other pregnancy services. 

Rep. Carter visits the Savannah Care Center
After a great visit, I head to our Savannah District office where I have a mandatory member ethics training class online followed by a Zoom interview with Nexstar (WSAV TV in Savannah parent company) to discuss the partisan policing bill that has been introduced by the House Democrats without Republican input.  A link to my interview can be found here.  Next, I have a virtual tour of the Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems plant in Savannah where I hear more on their power generation and energy storage solutions.  Afterwards, I have a virtual call with Microsoft representatives on their Teams platform to learn about the many on-line services they have to offer.  My final interview of the day is with Fox-28 TV in Savannah as I discuss this morning’s meeting with Republican National Convention officials and the prospects of Savannah being chosen as an alternative site. A link to this interview can be found here

Tuesday, June 9, 2020:  I have an Energy and Commerce (E&C) Environment Subcommittee member call after our daily all-staff conference call this morning, as we discuss plans for today's hearing.  Once in our Savannah office, I join the virtual E&C Environment Subcommittee hearing on pollution and pandemics and COVID-19’s impact on environmental justice communities.  A link to my questions can be found here.  After the three hours plus hearing, I have a Values Action Team (VAT) member and coalition WebEx call and afterwards I record a Public Service Announcement (PSA) for rural broadband and high-speed internet services.  Next, I have a GOP Conference call where we discuss the upcoming legislative schedule as well as pending issues like police reform. 

Wednesday, June 10, 2020 - Tuesday, June 16, 2020:  After our daily all-staff conference call and an E&C member briefing with Dr. Bob Kadlec, the Health and Human Services (HHS) Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), where we receive an update on the ASPR’s current efforts in the coronavirus response, I head to a highly anticipated family vacation.  Although I have some down time to enjoy family, I still have plenty of work to do. On Thursday, after our all-staff conference call, I have a Zoom interview with WTOC TV in Savannah to discuss legislation addressing police reform.  A link to my interview can be found here.  Next, I have a Webinar with Goldman Sachs representatives to discuss their 10,000 small businesses investment to help entrepreneurs create jobs and economic opportunity, followed by a virtual conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC) member meeting where we discuss the police reform legislation and pulling troops out of Germany.  My final call on Thursday is a Doctors Caucus conference call with Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma to discuss the COVID-19 response. On Friday I have a conference call with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to discuss southeastern regional issues before having another Doctors Caucus call.  Our special guest today is Surgeon General Jerome Adams as he gives us his perspective on how we should approach reopening the economy.  Later, I have a member briefing from the administration on the COVID-19 response followed by an E&C Health Subcommittee member WebEx conference to discuss next weeks hearing.  My final meeting Friday is an E&C full member Teams conference call with BIO’s CEO Michelle McMurry-Heath who provides use with an overview of BIO’s COVID-19 Therapeutic Development Tracker.  After our all-staff conference call on Monday, I have a conference call with the co-founders/CEO’s of Amneal, the only US domiciled generic drug manufacturer to discuss my legislation to bring pharmaceutical manufacturers back to the US.  Also, on Monday I have a GOP China Task Force conference call where we discuss the role of ideology in Xi’s China.  On Tuesday, I join my good friend Bill Edwards with NewsTalk 1290 radio in Savannah for a live interview where we discuss a litany of issues including police reform.  Afterwards, we have our daily all-staff conference call and later I join a GOP Conference call where we hear from Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) who gives us an overview of his police reform bill, the JUSTICE Act.  Afterwards, I have a phone conference with the International Paper Board of Directors to discuss paper issues and later that evening I participate in The American Council for Capital Formation Zoom meeting to discuss reopening our economy.

Wednesday, June 17, 2020:  After our daily all-staff conference call, I have an E&C Health Subcommittee hearing on health care inequality to discuss the racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19.  The three hours plus WebEx virtual meeting includes a panel of experts and useful information to help us determine the legislative remedies that may be needed.

Thursday, June 18, 2020:  Today starts with a phone interview with a local medical clinic owner who is writing an article for the ACGME publication Journal of Graduate Medical Education on the topic of chiropractic/physician integration.  Next, we have our daily all-staff conference call followed by a Zoom conference with UNICEF Southeast constituents as these most impressive young people explain the great work of providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide that this group provides.  Afterwards, I have a Teams conference with the Savannah Chapter of Citizens Climate Lobby to discuss our work on the Select Committee on Climate Change. 

Rep. Carter meeting with Ben Adams
Once in my Savannah District office, I have a great meeting with Ben Adams, who is highly involved in the local community, to discuss Opportunity Zones with businesses and housing.  Opportunity Zones were created in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and are census tracts designated by the Treasury that provide tax incentives to businesses who locate there.  Next, I join a virtual meeting of the conservative Republican Study Committee before recording this week’s edition of Buddy’s Briefings.  My final meeting of the day is an E&C Communications and Technology Subcommittee briefing that I waive onto dealing with the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) approval of Ligado’s request for a license modification in the L-band.

Friday, June 19, 2020:  After our daily all-staff conference call, I join a Teams conference with a member of the National Small Business Association Leadership Council to discuss their efforts to support other small businesses.  Afterwards, I have an E&C member briefing with AdvaMed in what turns out to be one of the most interesting and helpful briefings we have had.  The briefing walks through the different in vitro diagnostic tests currently on the market for the COVID-19 response including molecular tests, serological tests and antigen tests.  My final meeting of the week is a Zoom conference with BioMarin Pharmaceuticals to discuss their work on research and development of orphan drugs.    

 
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