Trump signs COVID-19 relief bill
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Tuesday, Dec. 29 blocked the House bill that would have fulfilled President Donald Trump’s request to increase the coronavirus relief stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000, noting that senators will soon “begin a process” to address the issue.
Trump signed Congress’ long-awaited $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill on Sunday, Dec. 27 after lengthy back-and-forths between congressional Republicans and Democrats, as previously reported in the Asian Journal.
That bill approved the heavily debated stimulus checks that would provide millions of American taxpayers a $600 stimulus check and extend unemployment benefits for the jobless and independent workers.
On Monday, Dec. 28 after the president signed the bill, the House immediately approved legislation that would have increased the stimulus checks to $2,000 in a vote that included nearly all Democrats and a few dozen Republicans.
McConnell and other Senate Republicans — who have been wary of the cost of pandemic aid — now face mounting pressure from Democrats and Trump, both of whom argue that the increased stimulus checks would provide more relief to economically stricken families across the country.
“Unless Republicans have a death wish, and it is also the right thing to do, they must approve $2000 payments ASAP. $600 IS NOT ENOUGH!” Trump tweeted on Tuesday morning in response to McConnell’s decision to block the bill.
As Senate Republicans fight to keep their majority ahead of a pair of key run-off elections in Georgia next week, McConnell brought back the Senate this week to override Trump’s veto of the annual National Defense Authorization Act and outlined three major conditions that Trump had when he signed the $900 billion relief bill: heftier stimulus checks, amending a bill that includes protections for Big Tech firms and unsubstantiated concerns over election fraud.
If the Senate ends up considering new legislation that would increase stimulus check payments, all 48 Democrats (and independents who caucus with them) are expected to vote for it, but they would need support from at least 12 of the Senate’s 52 Republicans.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is likely to issue the $600 payments as early as late this week; those who have bank information on file with the Treasury Department will likely receive direct deposits and others will receive checks in the mail.
If Congress ends up approving legislation on the $2,000 stimulus payments, that will be an additional direct payment.
