Three things for April 16
1. First wave of stimulus checks deposited
On Wednesday, the first wave of coronavirus stimulus checks were deposited into the bank accounts of over 80 million Americans. These checks are the federal government’s response to the unprecedented damage that COVID-19 brought to the economy.
The first round of checks were automatically deposited to people who filed a 2018 or 2019 tax return and received a tax refund via direct deposit. Automatic deposits were also issued to Social Security retirement and disability beneficiaries. The next round of checks will go to people who do not typically file tax returns or provide bank account information to the IRS.
These “Economic Impact Payments” are worth up to $1,200 for single individuals or $2,400 for married couples, plus $500 for each dependent, qualifying child.
“We are pleased that many Americans are receiving their Economic Impact Payments,” said Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin in a press release by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. “This Administration is delivering fast and direct economic assistance to hard working Americans, and we hope these payments will bring them much-needed relief.”
2. Trump halts US funding to WHO
On Tuesday, President Trump announced his pending decision to halt U.S. funding to the World Health Organization (WHO), citing their “mishandling” of the COVID-19 pandemic as the basis for the decision.
“Today I am instructing my administration to halt funding of the World Health Organization while a review is conducted to assess the World Health Organization's role in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus,” Trump said in a Tuesday briefing at the White House.
As of Wednesday, there have been over 140,000 deaths and over 2 million cases of COVID-19 in the world. Additionally, over 500,000 people have recovered.
“No doubt, areas for improvement will be identified and there will be lessons for all of us to learn,” Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said about WHO’s performance. “But for now, our focus – my focus – is on stopping this virus and saving lives.”
3. Warren endorses Biden for president
On Wednesday morning, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren tweeted out her support for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.
Only a day after Sen. Bernie Sanders officially announced his endorsement for Biden, Warren joined the majority of the former 2020 Democratic presidential candidates in supporting him for the sake of the party.
“Among all the other candidates I competed with in the Democratic primary, there’s no one I’ve agreed with 100% of the time over the years,” said Warren in the video posted on Twitter. “But one thing I appreciate about Joe Biden is that he will always tell you where he stands.”
