Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday surprised the bill that increases stimulus payments to $ 2,000, which President Trump has pushed alongside Democratic leaders, saying it is not targeted enough.
McConnell argued that giving $ 2,000 checks to high-income households who have not faced job losses is “socialism for rich people” … “a terrible way to help the American families who are really struggling.”
Meanwhile, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer asked the Senate to pass the bill passed by the house to raise stimulus checks to $ 2,000, but McConnell objected.
“I will again ask for permission for the Senate to set a time for a vote on the bill to provide the American people with $ 2,000 checks,” Schumer said.
Schumer argued that the Senate should pass the House bill to increase the incentive checks to $ 2,000, saying, “There is one way and only one way to pass $ 2,000 checks before the end of the year and that is to Pass the House Law … Either the Senate and the House bill pass, otherwise Americans struggling won’t get $ 2,000 checks during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. “
“The Republican leader has come up with an excuse to prevent a clean vote, up or down, yes or no, voting for $ 2,000 checks coming to the floor,” he said, adding that McConnell’s maneuver to direct combine payments with other unrelated issues intended to destroy the possibility that $ 2000 checks will ever become law. “
McConnell introduced legislation on Tuesday that combines three Trump priorities – extensive stimulus controls, a full withdrawal of online liability protections, and an investigation into alleged voter fraud – each a prerequisite for Trump to sign the Covid relief and spending package earlier this week. Trump himself never specified that those three items should be linked.
But on Wednesday, McConnell said the bill had “no realistic path to pass the Senate quickly,” and said the Democrat-led effort was going astray from what Trump was actually asking.
Where things are: No votes are scheduled on McConnell’s law, or the legislation passed by the house, and GOP aides say it is likely that the 116th Congress will end without any action to increase direct payments.