Congressional Democrats are facing enormous pressure to show voters they are staying engaged and taking action to combat the deadly coronavirus pandemic during a critical election year.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi Nancy PelosiMcConnell focuses on confirming judicial nominees with COVID-19 talks stalled Overnight Defense: Top admiral says 'no condition' where US should conduct nuclear test 'at this time' | Intelligence chief says Congress will get some in-person election security briefings Pelosi must go — the House is in dire need of new leadership MORE (D-Calif.) has launched a new special House committee to oversee trillions of dollars in emergency spending, while other top Democrats are pushing legislation to create a separate 9/11-style commission looking into whether the government properly responded to the outbreak.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer Chuck SchumerMcConnell accuses Democrats of sowing division by 'downplaying progress' on election security Warren, Schumer introduce plan for next president to cancel ,000 in student debt Schumer lashes out at Trump over 'blue states' remark: 'What a disgrace' MORE (D-N.Y.) is aggressively pressing President Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE to appoint a “czar” to oversee the production and distribution of coronavirus-related medical supplies — a move that has rankled the president.

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And rank-and-file Democrats are getting creative to make sure their constituents know they are working on the crisis — even as they hunker down with their families at home.

Freshman Reps. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.), Haley Stevens Haley Maria StevensUS Chamber of Commerce set to endorse 23 House freshman Democrats Eric Esshaki wins Michigan GOP primary to challenge Haley Stevens The Hill's Campaign Report: Buzz builds around Warren for VP MORE (D-Mich.) and Elissa Slotkin Elissa SlotkinWray: Racially motivated violent extremism makes up most of FBI's domestic terrorism cases Overnight Defense: House chair announces contempt proceeding against Pompeo | Top general says military has no role in election disputes | Appeal court rejects due process rights for Gitmo detainees Top general: Military will play no role in resolving any electoral dispute MORE (D-Mich.) are among those who’ve held telephone town halls on the coronavirus in recent days, while progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-CortezWhy Democrats must confront extreme left wing incitement to violence The Hill Interview: Jerry Brown on climate disasters, COVID-19 and Biden's 'Rooseveltian moment' House Democrats postpone vote on marijuana decriminalization bill MORE (D-N.Y.) has been answering coronavirus questions on Facebook Live, Instagram stories, Zoom and other social media platforms.

Rep. Max Rose Max RoseThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - Pence lauds Harris as 'experienced debater'; Trump, Biden diverge over debate prep Navy cancels training flight over NYC on 9/11 after criticism FDNY says Treasury withheld .7M from 9/11 first responder fund MORE (D-N.Y.), who flipped a GOP-held seat in Staten Island in 2018, is taking things a step further. The decorated Afghanistan War veteran deployed to the National Guard, where he is helping to build overflow field hospitals in the New York region that’s become ground zero for the coronavirus.

“When I'm a member of Congress, the generals call me ‘sir.’ But when I'm in uniform, I'm just a lowly captain,” Rose told reporters before his deployment. “So I'm going into this with no illusions of grandeur — just to do my small part and do my duty.”

The Democrats’ efforts come as Trump has used his bully pulpit to dominate headlines and the air waves, particularly with the daily White House briefing on the crisis.

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He and his coronavirus task force — comprised of Vice President Pence, National Institute for Allergy and Infections Diseases Director Anthony Fauci Anthony FauciControversial CDC guidelines were written by HHS officials, not scientists: report Overnight Health Care: Ex-Pence aide backs Biden over virus response | Trump's sharp words put CDC director on hot seat | Trump coronavirus adviser threatens to sue Stanford researchers Trump coronavirus adviser threatens to sue Stanford researchers MORE and other medical experts — have held daily press briefings, which have attracted millions of television viewers.

That’s put congressional Democrats and former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenCast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response Biden tells CNN town hall that he has benefited from white privilege MORE, the party’s likely presidential nominee, at a disadvantage as they try to protect their House majority and flip control of the Senate and White House.

Home on a lengthy recess, lawmakers have spent the past week touting the passage of their historic $2.2 trillion coronavirus health bill — the largest such emergency rescue package in history. But with more than 10 million people filing for unemployment benefits and a death toll in the thousands, lawmakers are now racing to demonstrate they will be part of a months-long, sustained battle against COVID-19.

Pelosi has been making the media rounds — including MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” CNBC and CBS’s “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone ColbertColbert: Trump sharing fake 'F--- tha Police' video made Biden 'way cooler' White House officials deny Trump bears responsibility for social unrest Pelosi questions level of Trump 'responsibility' after 'brazen' shooting of Wisconsin protesters MORE” — to push for a fourth stimulus bill, though that proposal has shifted in recent days from an economic recovery package to yet another emergency one as the crisis has worsened.

She’s done those interviews from the Capitol, a subtle signal to viewers that work is continuing in Washington even with nearly all of her members back home.

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The Speaker is also trying to ensure that the trillions in aid from the first three coronavirus packages are being spent appropriately. Last week, she appointed House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), a close ally of Biden, to chair a new special bipartisan committee to provide oversight of the coronavirus spending. Republicans panned the Pelosi committee, arguing that the bipartisan package already created a panel to oversee bailout funds.

House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries Hakeem Sekou JeffriesPelosi: House will stay in session until agreement is reached on coronavirus relief Races heat up for House leadership posts Postmaster general earned millions from company with ties to Postal Service: report MORE (D-N.Y.) and other leaders also have been holding near-daily conference calls with rank-and-file members on various coronavirus issues, from stimulus checks and food security to housing. Some members said they are particularly worried that unemployment benefits and low-interest loans were not getting out quickly enough to out-of-work constituents and shuttered small businesses in their districts due to an inundated IRS and Small Business Administration.

Letters sent to the Trump administration have been popular, too. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Sen. Chris Van Hollen Christopher (Chris) Van HollenMid-Atlantic states sue EPA over Chesapeake Bay pollution Trump payroll-tax deferral for federal workers sparks backlash Senators urge administration to make payroll tax deferral optional for federal workers MORE (D-Md.) and 15 other Senate Democrats sent a letter to Defense Department officials calling for a probe into whether the captain of the U.S.S Theodore Roosevelt was fired after sounding the alarm about a COVID-19 outbreak on his ship.

Democrats are flexing their oversight muscles in other ways as well. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson Bennie Gordon ThompsonHillicon Valley: FBI chief says Russia is trying to interfere in election to undermine Biden | Treasury Dept. sanctions Iranian government-backed hackers FBI director calls antifa 'a real thing' Democrats slam DHS chief for defying subpoena for testimony on worldwide threats MORE (D-Miss.) and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff Adam Bennett SchiffOvernight Defense: Top admiral says 'no condition' where US should conduct nuclear test 'at this time' | Intelligence chief says Congress will get some in-person election security briefings Overnight Defense: House to vote on military justice bill spurred by Vanessa Guillén death | Biden courts veterans after Trump's military controversies Intelligence chief says Congress will get some in-person election security briefings MORE (D-Calif.) have rolled out dueling legislation to create a 9/11-style bipartisan commission to investigate why the U.S. government was not prepared for the coronavirus pandemic and how the country can prevent an outbreak from happening again.

Rep. Stephanie Murphy Stephanie MurphyDemocrats scramble on COVID-19 relief amid division, Trump surprise Bank lobbying group launches ad backing Collins reelection bid House Democrats call on State Department for information on Uighur prisoner Ekpar Asat MORE (D-Fla.), a leader of the moderate Blue Dogs, and Rep. John Katko John Michael KatkoThis week: House returns for pre-election sprint Hillicon Valley: Simulated cyberattack success | New bill for election security funding | Amazon could be liable for defective products Lawmakers introduce bill to help election officials address cyber vulnerabilities MORE (R-N.Y.), a leader of the centrist Tuesday Group, have authored the first bipartisan version of the coronavirus commission bill.

“The general feeling I get from my colleagues now is that we were not ready. ... I am convinced that properly positioned, we should have had a better response to it. There should have been a functioning system to address the pandemic,” Thompson said in a phone interview from his district office in Bolton, Miss.

“The messaging we were getting from the White House was not the same message we were getting from the CDC and other professionals,” he added. “For quite a few weeks, it was a series of misstatements and missteps. That was inconsistent in a time of emergency.”

Other House Democrats have joined Schumer in urging Trump to create a special post within the administration to evaluate the various supply needs around the country and manage the procurement and distribution of personal protective equipment, or PPE.

“The problem that I see right now is we really ... have to have some kind of centralization with regard to this PPE,” House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) told reporters this week. “So, I would like to have some, one person at the federal level who's in charge of this who's not only getting the stuff from overseas or whatever, but also getting the data to where this stuff is so that it can be redistributed.”

“We provided the money,” Pallone added. “It's really a question of distribution at this point and manufacturing a lot of this stuff, too.”

Mike Lillis and Juliegrace Brufke contributed.