Mayor Bill de Blasio opened his Thursday news conference by discussing the United States plunging GDP.

The U.S. GDP plunged at a record rate at 32.9 %, which is the single largest GDP drop in recorded history.

He also stated that the $600 federal pandemic unemployment compensation expires Friday.

The mayor says the federal government is falling short on several issues. He says the Senate majority is blocking a new stimulus bill and that the president has stayed silent on the matter.

He also addressed President Trump’s call for the election to be postponed, saying mail-in voting, not absentee voting, will make it the most fraudulent and inaccurate election in history.

Mayor de Blasio says this would be an assault on our democracy.

Despite what he calls failures from the federal government, the mayor credits New York state for giving eligible residents the opportunity to apply for up to 20 additional weeks of unemployment benefits.

He says the city’s Department of Small Business Services is giving free training to people to prepare them for jobs. According to the mayor, 37,000 people are being connected with virtual job resources and more than 500 employers are working with the city to recruit nearly 10,000 jobs.