According to The Hill, many Democrats also call on the party leadership to find ways to work remotely.
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives intend to approve a remote vote next week because of the spread of coronavirus infection. As The Hill noted on Monday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Majority Leader Stanie Hoyer discussed in a teleconference with fellow party members the prospect of introducing changes, particularly allowing legislators to vote for absent colleagues.
“Voting was originally scheduled for last week, when the lower house was meeting to approve a stimulus package for small businesses and hospitals. But the Democrats decided to withdraw the application because of disputes with Republicans who insisted on the personal presence of lawmakers on the example of workers in vital industries who can’t work remotely”, – the publication writes. At the same time, inter-party consultations are continuing.
Many Democrats are calling on the party leadership to find ways to work remotely, because they want to continue to hold hearings and criticize the current U.S. administration for its response to the pandemic, but at the same time they fear getting infected, returning from the states to the capital.
The initiative, announced by Jim McGovern, head of the Standing Orders Committee, involves remote voting, meetings, hearings and bill reviews, as well as technical aspects of the process. The House of Representatives and the Senate of Congress will meet on May 4 after a break caused by the spread of the coronavirus in the country.