The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden issued a renewed ban on evictions that will last until October 3. The order will temporarily stop evictions in counties with substantial and high levels of coronavirus spread. Eviction is the process of forcing people or businesses to leave property that they do not own. The order was given by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and covers areas where an estimated 90 percent of the U.S. population lives. The eviction ban was an especially important issue to one lawmaker. About 20 years before she was elected to Congress, Representative Cori Bush of Missouri lived in a car with her husband at the time and two young children. The family had been evicted from their rental home. Bush is a first-term Democrat from the city of St. Louis. To her, the debate over whether to continue the ban on evictions during the coronavirus crisis has been personal. In a show of support for the measure, she started to sleep outside the Capitol last Friday. She wanted to call attention to the issue as part of the effort to pressure Biden and Congress to act. Bush's experience sets her apart from members of the different political parties in the capital. She has a direct connection to an urgent problem affecting many Americans. I know what it's like to be evicted and have to live out of my car with my two babies, Bush told reporters Saturday. As long as I am a sitting U.S. congressperson, I will not keep my mouth shut about it. Bush was a part of a larger push among some lawmakers to stop evictions. Her decision to sleep outside the Capitol got attention. Top congressional leaders and administration officials invited her to meet with them. Reporters asked to speak with her. She met with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and had a short talk with Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday. Bush’s career in politics has developed quickly. She has gone from leading protests against police in Ferguson, Missouri, to Congress in little more than five years. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday gave a salute to Bush for her powerful action to keep people in their homes.
