Good morning, Broadsheet readers! The House passes coronavirus relief legislation, Chrystia Freeland steps into the spotlight in Canada, and we want to know how you’re dealing with childcare during a quarantine.
– Childcare and coronavirus. Since the last Broadsheet, more of you are probably spending time at home—maybe with your whole family.
We want to know: how’s it going? If you have children and are lucky enough to be able to work from home, how are you handling childcare and work? Your new duties as a homeschooling parent? Sharing home workspaces and electronic resources between multiple adults, college and high-school students, and small children?
Has your employer acknowledged the difficulties of accessing childcare during this time? (Some, including Vox and the Washington Post, have told employees things like “do your best” or even made unlimited paid-time off available). If you’re the one making those decisions, what are you telling your employees?
If you work in a field that keeps you out of the house by necessity—health care, the service industry—first: thank you for all you do; second: how are you managing childcare if your kids aren’t in school? (New York City closed its public-school system—the largest in the country—yesterday.)
This story in the Wall Street Journal gives a good picture of what a similar reality has been like for one family in Hong Kong. But we want to hear from you directly. Tell us what working from home (or not) is like, especially when it comes to childcare, by replying to this email or emailing [email protected]. Your responses may be used in a future edition of the newsletter.
Stay safe, healthy, and socially distant!
Emma Hinchliffe
[email protected]
@_emmahinchliffe
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Biden's veep. Joe Biden committed to selecting a female running mate during the Democratic debate last night. "There are a number of women who would be qualified to be president," he said in making the pledge. He also promised—if elected—to choose a cabinet that reflects U.S. Demographics and to nominate a black woman to the Supreme Court, if he has the chance. Politico
- Families first act. The House of Representatives passed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's bipartisan coronavirus financial aid package on Saturday; it now awaits Senate approval. The bill provides three months of paid family and medical leave and two weeks of emergency sick leave to some workers, although it has a gaping hole: large employers with more than 500 employees are exempt from the requirement. New York Times
- RNC-ovid. Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel is awaiting COVID-19 test results after exhibiting flu-like symptoms but testing negative for the flu. McDaniel last met with President Trump a week ago and attended a Senate GOP lunch last week. CNN
- Deputy in the spotlight. With Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in self-quarantine because of Sophie Grégoire Trudeau's COVID-19 diagnosis, even more responsibility than usual may fall to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland. The Atlantic analyzes Freeland's view on the world based on her past writing: The Atlantic
- In other news... We understand if you only have bandwidth for Covid-19 news right now. But if you're hungry for a little counter-programing, I'd recommend an important new package of stories Coins2Day published this morning, focused on the ways the business community is (finally!) Beginning to tackle the climate crisis. Read it here
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Kathy Vrabeckis GameStop’s new board chair.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
- Closed for business. Retailers are starting to close their store locations to try to stem the flow of the coronavirus. Emily Weiss's Glossier was one of the first to make the call; Glossier has now been joined by Apple, Nike, and co-working space The Wing. Coins2Day
- Pandemic expert perspective. Beth Cameron, the former senior director for global health security and biodefense on the White House National Security Council, ran the White House pandemic office—opened in 2014 in response to the Ebola crisis—that President Trump closed in 2018. She writes for the Washington Post about the consequences of that decision. "The job of a White House pandemics office would have been to get ahead," she writes. Washington Post
- Hyde in the House. As the House of Representatives raced to pass coronavirus relief legislation this weekend, House Republicans attempted to make sure that any new funding for COVID-19 relief included the same language as the Hyde Amendment: no federal funds for abortion. "We can have that debate another time," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said about the disagreement slowing down the legislation during a Fox News interview. Mother Jones
- Binge watch. While spending more time at home, have you watched Hillary, the new Hulu documentary, yet? This piece makes the case for the enduring legacy of Hillary Clinton's wardrobe through the decades, as seen in the series. Director Nanette Burstein says fashion is an "organic" part of Clinton's legacy and story. Marie Claire
ON MY RADAR
Love in the time of coronavirus: Couples are scrambling to prepare last-minute wedding alternatives Coins2Day
Women are turning their 40th-birthday parties into wedding-level extravaganzas Glamour
The masculine bluster of Trump's coronavirus handshaking tour Slate
Megan Thee Stallion's sweet defiance The Atlantic
PARTING WORDS
"How about you amaze me and do the right thing[?]"
-Simone Biles, asking USA Gymnastics to conduct an independent investigation into Larry Nassar's abuse, after the organization wished her a happy birthday on Twitter and said she "amazed" them