AOC and Pelosi back Trump’s call for $2,000 Stimulus checks
Pollemix News – December 23, 2020
Speaker Nancy Pelosi and ‘Squad’ leader Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez threw their support behind President Donald Trump’s call overnight to increase direct payments to individuals from $600 to $2,000, throwing up a final twist in the long-running saga of providing a second Coronavirus stimulus package to Americans devastated by the pandemic.
Republicans repeatedly refused to say what amount the President wanted for direct checks. At last, the President has agreed to $2,000 — Democrats are ready to bring this to the Floor this week by unanimous consent. Let’s do it! https://t.co/Th4sztrpLV
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) December 23, 2020
It follows months of acrimonious negotiations between Democrats, who consistently called for higher payments, and Republicans who have pushed for a more limited spending bill. The Democrats support for President Trump’s $2,000 payment is certain to cause a huge headache for Senator Mitch McConnell who stridently opposed any direct payment before finally relenting to the modest $600 check proposed in the final bill. McConnell now faces the unenviable prospect of having to defy his own party’s President, whilst the normally anti-Trump Democrats are wholeheartedly supportive of the President’s proposal.
Let’s do it. @RashidaTlaib and I already co-wrote the COVID amendment for $2,000 checks, so it’s ready to go.
Glad to see the President is willing to support our legislation.
We can pass $2k checks this week if the Senate GOP agrees to stand down. https://t.co/GprwrUPali pic.twitter.com/nFFs1ExqCK
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 23, 2020
In spite of Trump’s invocation, however, it is unlikely that the bill will be changed at this late stage as it took nearly 6 months of intense wrangling to reach a compromise that the Democratic House and Republican Senate could agree on and both sides are reluctant to avoid any last minute slip ups that could scuttle the bill. Moreover, the majority of GOP members are adamantly opposed to increasing the payments to individuals so the President’s proposal would be a non-starter amongst his own colleagues.
The question now remains as to how Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will be able to placate the President enough to sign off on the bill in spite of his reservations. The Kentucky Senator has always been renowned for his legislative skills, but there has been public outcry to increase the paltry $600 payment offered in the bill which is certain to appeal to Trump’s populist senses. Complicating matters further is McConnell’s tense relationship with the President who recently attacked him for being insufficiently supportive in his efforts to overturn the 2020 Presidential election. Now with Pelosi practically daring Trump to follow through on his veto threat, Senator McConnell will surely have a nervy few days ahead as he looks to get the bill across the line.
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