Faster Stimulus Checks, Pompeo’s Surreal Speech on China, and More

July 28, 2020

70 million to 100 million Americans waited one to three months for COVID-19 stimulus payments that eventually arrived as a paper check or debit card. With a second round of payments likely coming, Aaron Klein says that policymakers should learn the lessons from the initial rollout and deliver money to citizens much faster.

Last week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a speech on what he deemed failures of 50 years of U.S. engagement with China and called for free societies to stand up against Beijing’s autocratic tendencies. Thomas Wright argues that the Trump administration’s track record—both internationally and at home—undermine Pompeo’s call to action.

Tomorrow, the most powerful technology leaders in the world—Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Tim Cook of Apple, Sundar Pichai of Google, and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook—are scheduled to testify before Congress on competition policy and antitrust issues during an era where large companies exercise considerable market power. Darrell West poses important questions that members of Congress should ask these leaders about the technology controversies facing the United States and the world.

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