U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney

An extraordinary action that will resonate in our region’s growing economy for years to come.

The shared experience of the COVID pandemic, now in its second year, has at times shown the potential to defuse the toxic polarization that divides our nation. Here is a bill that helps protect healthcare workers and has bipartisan support.

One of the most dynamic and striking figures in American history, General George S. Patton, was famous for saying “Lead, follow, or get out of the way.” Those words, which were uttered 75 years ago at a time of world crisis when he was leading the Third Army through France and Germany, ring true today, albeit during a different kind of crisis — but one that poses a lethal and devastating impact if not addressed decisively.

Since passage of the CARES Act and H.R. 266, there has been extensive coverage about the billions in new resources the bills authorized — from tax rebates to individuals and families, to benefits for unemployed workers, to funding for hospitals and nursing homes across our region. These are all good and necessary things, but COVID-19-driven layoffs and furloughs are only part of the economic story in America right now. What’s been missing from headlines is the fight that so many of our eastern Connecticut farmers are up against amid this pandemic.

As I’ve traveled across eastern Connecticut in the past weeks and months, the issue I hear about over and over from all walks of life is the relentless skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs.

As we enter the second year of the Trump administration, the president’s inability to advance a firm, coherent U.S. position toward Russia persists despite a torrent of belligerent behavior by the Kremlin toward the West. Indeed, on the day he announced a new national security strategy that purported to challenge Russia, President Donald Trump could not help but publicly exult about the unctuous phone call he had received from Russian President Vladimir Putin the day before.