Today, the Senate Banking Committee is holding a hearing with @USTreasury Sec. Mnuchin & @federalreserve Chair Powell for the Quarterly CARES Act Report to Congress

You can watch live here, or follow this thread for video clips. https://www.banking.senate.gov/hearings/the-quarterly-cares-act-report-to-congress

@SenSherrodBrown thanks Chair @MikeCrapo for "following the advice of health experts" & holding a virtual hearing. He expresses outrage by McConnell's "reckless decision" to keep Senate in session, putting Capitol workers at risk. Ends w moment of silence for workers who've died

@SenSherrodBrown says #Covid_19 shows spirit of solidarity among us, but also shows corporations treating workers "as a cost to be minimized."

A grocery store worker in Ohio told me recently, 'I don't feel essential. I feel expendable.'"

@SenSherrodBrown "you might think at a time when we're demanding more from essential workers than ever before--mostly women, often Black and brown workers--you might think they'd all be getting a huge raise...but that's not happening. Workers are being left behind AGAIN"

"We tried to make sure the trillions in spending didn't just go to Wall St, we wanted to make sure it got directly into workers' pockets.

We didn't want to see it go to gas & oil companies, whose activities pose an existential threat to essential workers & our whole economy"

"Congress has an important responsibility to ensure the $500 billion we already approved is actually getting to workers.

From what we know so far, it doesn't appear this Admin or the @federalreserve is making workers their priority"

Chair Powell: "as policymakers, we should continue to do what we can to cushion the blow. "

"Job gains from the last decade have been reversed. People earning less are those hardest hit."

Summarizes their actions in outright purchases, liquidity measures, MMF support.

@federalreserve Chair Powell cites "temporary regulatory adjustments" as a fourth thing the Fed has done.

Notes 11 facilities have been created thus far under 13(3).

"We are committed to transparency. Public faith in our operations depends on that transparency"

Chair @MikeCrapo asks Powell about the Fed lending to municipalities, that thresholds prevent small cities & countries from applying for loans.

Powell: "We'll always lend to a state, for downstreaming to cities."

Chair @MikeCrapo asks about the $500 billion from CARES to be used by the Fed, "most of that has not played out yet?"

Mnuchin: "450 BN available for 13(3). Half has been allocated. We are just started to get these up & running. Want to know which facility needs more capital"

Mnuchin: "We are fully prepared to take losses in certain scenarios on that capital" in the Fed's 13(3) lending facilities.

Chair Crapo asks about the allegations that only big companies are being helped by the facilities.

Mnuchin's response is that the Fed's announcement impacted credit markets so much that Boeing got lending from the private markets

@SenWarren: "Congress placed nearly half a trillion in corporate bailout money in your hands. The law gives Treasury & Fed authority to write detailed rules determining which companies get taxpayer relief.

Will you require companies to keep their workers on payroll?"

@SenWarren: "You're saying, in all the facilities that are not Main Street, you're not putting in ANY requirement for payroll.

The Main Street facility [requirement] is...If they take taxpayer $, & they say 'it didn't work out commercially for us,' then they can fire people"

@SenWarren: "The answer to my Q--whether or not you're going to require, as part of the terms of the loan, that people be kept on payroll--is no?"

Mnuchin tries to blame Congress.

Warren: "No, I'm talking about your term sheets." (Which Fed/Treasury have *full control* over)

Mnuchin: "the airline program had very specific requirements to keep jobs"

Warren: "And the rest was left up to you, and what you're saying is that you won't do it."

Mnuchin: "These issues were discussed"

Warren: "Your term sheets do not require that firms retain one job"