Bloomberg Quicktake's video: Pelosi Says We Are in a Full-Blown Economic and Health Catastrophe

As Americans prepare for Thanksgiving, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said the holiday which is considered a time to show gratitude, will also be marked "with great pain, great pain that in our country in the course of this year, two hundred and fifty thousand Americans have lost their lives to the coronavirus." Pelosi noted that Congress has yet to pass any further coronavirus relief aid and placed blame for the inaction on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. "Over six months ago when we passed the Heroes Act, Leader McConnell said, we need a pause. We need a pause. Well, I would hope that for him, the pause can come to an end. Nearly 200,000 people have died during that pause, so we're asking him to come back to the table," Pelosi said. Congressional Democrats and Republicans generally say a new stimulus bill is needed, but they disagree on the scope of it. Some Republicans are opposed to another round of checks directly to most taxpayers, and some don’t want Washington to “bail out” state and local governments that had financial struggles before the pandemic. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, continues to block a smooth transition of power to the next president. Later Friday, Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer are set to have their first in-person meeting with President-elect Joe Biden since winning the election. When asked by a reporter if she sees "an expanded role for the House in trying to make sure (the transition) goes smoothly," she replied yes, but didn't elaborate saying she's not one to show her hand, "but nonetheless, we're ready." Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Connect with us on… YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Bloomberg Breaking News on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BloombergQuickTakeNews Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicktake Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicktake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicktake