Indian-American Congressman appointed to White House Coronavirus Advisory Council

April 19, 2020

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Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., talks to Bernie Sanders before the senator from Vermont takes the stage. In Sanders, Khanna, whose district includes Silicon Valley, found a candidate who shared his diagnosis of the country’s most vexing problems: inequality and the failures of unrestrained capitalism. (Photo by Nick Otto for The Washington Post)

Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna of California is among more than 200 individuals, appointed by the White House to its Coronavirus Advisory Council in a bid to return to economic normalcy.

The council will be advising the existing White House Coronavirus Task Force on the gradual opening up of businesses in the country.

Congressman Khanna announced April 16, 2020, that he had been on the first Advisory Council conference call with President Trump.

According to an ABCNews report the Advisory Council features prominent leaders from major industries ranging from real estate to finance to sports. Some of the big names on the Advisory Council are Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

“The American people need action, support, and direction from the federal government,” Khanna said in a statement.

“The Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program just ran out of the funds to keep Main Street afloat. Millions of Americans are filing for unemployment every week. That’s why I, along with several of my Democratic colleagues, decided to accept President Trump’s invitation to serve on the White House Coronavirus Advisory Council,” he added.

While he had differences with the President, Rep. Khanna said, “… the task at hand is too important for partisanship,” adding that he would “… continue to fight to get working class Americans the relief they need to make it to the other side of COVID-19.”

He said he would call for “massive investment” in advanced manufacturing, in innovative scientific advancement, and in smart technology.

“Already, we have seen that America was too dependent for crucial medical equipment and electronics on China, Germany and other nations,” he noted, adding that, “Like Eisenhower did during the Cold War, we can reshape the future of American industry to rebuild our economy if we harness the power of American innovation.”