House GOP halts $ 2,000 aid checks
Democrats are trying to meet Trump’s call for more COVID aid as his own party balks.
Republicans shoot down the Democratic effort to pass the president’s demand for greater pandemic relief.
WASHINGTON — House Republicans shot down a Democratic bid on Thursday to pass President Trump’s long- shot, end- ofsession demand for $ 2,000 direct payments to most Americans in exchange for his signature on a long- overdue COVID- 19 relief bill.
The Democratic- controlled chamber had convened for a pro forma session scheduled in anticipation of a smooth landing for the massive year- end legislative package, which folds together $ 1.4 trillion of government spending with the hard- fought COVID- 19 package and dozens of unrelated bipartisan bills.
Thursday’s unusual 12minute House session instead morphed into unconvincing theater in response to Trump’s veto musings about the package, which Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin had negotiated on Trump’s behalf.
Maryland Rep. Steny H. Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democrat, sought the unanimous approval of all House members to pass the bill, but Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, who was not present in the nearly empty chamber, denied his approval and the effort fizzled.
If Trump follows through on his implied veto threat, delivered via video clip on Tuesday, the government will probably experience a brief partial shutdown starting on Dec. 29. His veto would also delay delivery of the $ 600 direct payments contained in the bill.
Senate Republicans, led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, have opposed larger checks as too costly and poorly targeted.
Democrats support the direct payments and now plan to vote on the $ 2,000 check proposal on Monday.
The president’s last- minute objections are setting up
a defining showdown with his own Republican Party in his final days in office.
Rather than take the victory of the sweeping aid package, among the biggest in history, Trump is lashing out at GOP leaders for acknowledging Joe Biden as president- elect and rebuffing his campaign to reject the electoral college results when they are tallied in Congress on Jan. 6.
The president’s push to increase direct payments for most Americans from $ 600 to $ 2,000 for individuals and $ 4,000 for couples splits the Republican Party with a politically painful loyalty test, including for GOP Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeff ler, f ighting to retain their seats in the Jan. 5 runoff election in Georgia.
Republican lawmakers traditionally balk at big spending on social assistance and many never fully embraced Trump’s populist approach.
Their political DNA tells them to oppose a costlier re
lief package. But now they’re being asked to stand with the president.
On a conference call Wednesday, House Republicans complained that Trump threw them under the bus, according to one who was on the private call and agreed to discuss it anonymously. Most had voted for the package and urged leaders to hit the cable news shows to explain its benefits, the person said.
Democrats were taking advantage of the Republican disarray to apply pressure for what they consider a priority.
Jon Ossoff, Perdue’s Democratic opponent, tweeted simply on Tuesday night: “$ 2,000 checks now.”
The relief bill Trump is criticizing would establish a temporary $ 300- per- week supplemental jobless benefit, along with a new round of subsidies for hard- hit businesses, restaurants and theaters and money for schools, healthcare providers and renters facing eviction.
Even though Mnuchin represented the White House in negotiations for the package, Trump assailed the bipartisan effort in a video he tweeted out Tuesday night, suggesting he may not sign the legislation.
Railing against various provisions in the broader government funding package, including foreign aid mainstays included each
year, Trump called the bill a “disgrace.”
He did not explicitly say he would use his veto power, and there may be enough support in Congress to override him if he does. But the consequences would be severe if Trump were to upend the legislation.
There would be no federal aid to struggling Americans and small businesses, and no additional resources to help with vaccine distribution.
To top it off, because lawmakers linked the pandemic relief bill to an overarching funding measure, the government would be forced to shut down Tuesday.
The final text of the more than 5,000- page bill was still being prepared by Congress to be sent to the White House for Trump’s signature, an aide said.
That complicates the schedule ahead. If Trump vetoes the package, or allows it to expire with a “pocket veto” at the end of the year, Americans will go even longer without COVID aid.
A resolution could be forced Monday. That’s when a stopgap funding bill to keep the government funded while the paperwork is compiled expires, risking a federal shutdown.
Democrats are considering another stopgap measure to at least keep government running until Biden is sworn into office Jan. 20, according to two aides granted anonymity to discuss the private talks.
The House was already set to return Monday and the Senate on Tuesday, for votes to override Trump’s veto of the must- pass defense bill. Democrats may try again at that time to pass Trump’s proposal for $ 2,000 checks, as well as the temporary government funding measure to avert a shutdown, the aides said.
The push for bigger payments to Americans drew rare common cause between Trump and some of the most liberal members of Congress.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco and fellow Democrats said they fought for the higher stipends during protracted negotiations only to settle on the lower number when Republicans refused.
Republicans have been reluctant to spend more on pandemic relief and only agreed to the big year- end package as time dwindled for a final deal.
Sen. Charles E. Schumer of New York, the Senate Democratic leader, said that “Trump needs to sign the bill to help people and keep the government open,” and that Congress would step up for more aid after.
The Senate cleared the huge relief package by a 92- 6 vote after the House approved it 359 to 53. Those vote totals would be enough to override a veto should Trump decide to take that step.
Biden applauded lawmakers for their work. He described the package as far from perfect, but said that “it does provide vital relief at a critical time.”
He also said more relief would be needed in the months ahead.
‘ Trump needs to sign the bill to help people and keep the government open.’ — Charles E. Schumer, Senate Democratic leader, adding that Congress will follow up soon with more assistance