Covid-19 Bill Negotiations offers first test of Biden’s bipartisan effort

Biden earlier this month launched a plan that would provide an additional $ 1,400 in direct payments per person, completing the $ 600 in checks approved in December. The plan also includes money for rent assistance and food stamps, to extend federal unemployment assistance to September and increase the federal weekly allowance from $ 300 to $ 400.

“It seems premature to consider a package of this size and scope. This concern, which I had before the briefing, remains my concern, ”Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine), a leader of the bipartisan group, along with Sen. Joe Manchin (D., W.Va.), said after the call, that aides lasted about an hour and 15 minutes. Other Republicans echoed that concern, noting that Congress passed a $ 900 billion aid bill in December, after another aid in early 2020.

Manchin mentioned reservations about the cost of the project in his final comments, saying the proposal was too big and needed to be able to enlist the support of legislators with fiscal responsibility, according to advisers.

Democratic supporters of Biden’s plan say the size of the package addresses the economic and public health crises created by the Covid-19 pandemic, which killed more than 400,000 people in the United States

“President Biden’s plan is necessary to keep the virus under control and prevent lasting damage to our economy,” said Sen. Dick Durbin (D., Illinois) in a statement after the meeting. “The Senate must meet on a bipartisan basis and provide the resources that the American people need to survive this pandemic and this long financial difficulty.”

Lawmakers said they came together around the need to quickly move additional funds for vaccine distribution and related issues, such as compensating rural hospitals for the cost of administering the vaccine.

“This was raised as part of the concern about the moment we have, because obviously we have an impeachment trial coming up,” said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D., NH) of a bill’s focus on vaccine financing. “We don’t have much time to move things around, and in terms of what could be more useful,” vaccine funding was widely supported on the call, Shaheen said.

Lawmakers have also expressed hope that a third round of direct payments to Americans will be more targeted to ensure that the neediest receive checks. Government officials said they would provide more data on how they arrived at policy provisions, including financing education.

“The additional stimulus checks that the president is proposing are not well targeted,” said Collins. “This has been repeated by several other senators and I hope the government will take a second look at this.”

Lawmakers said they expected the bipartisan group, which includes legislators from both chambers, to continue to meet to try to create a more targeted package.

Concerns raised at Sunday’s meeting reinforced earlier comments by Republican lawmakers about the price of the proposal and the inclusion of long-standing, unrelated Democratic policy proposals, such as an increase in the minimum wage.

On CNN on Sunday, Senator Mitt Romney (R., Utah) said he is open to discussions with the White House, but added: “I think people recognize that it is important not to borrow hundreds of billions, in fact, trillions of Chinese dollars, for things that may not be absolutely necessary. ”

The White House has signaled that it is prepared to negotiate. Biden’s chief of staff Ron Klain said on NBC that he saw signs of bipartisanship when considering the new government’s agenda, citing the Senate’s quick confirmation of Biden’s choices for defense secretary and director of national intelligence with broad support from the Republican Party .

This quick action should also apply to fighting the coronavirus, he said, “Americans, Democrats and Republicans are dying.”

Negotiations on the package, however, are at risk of being hampered by Trump’s second impeachment trial.

On Monday, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D., Md.), The chief impeachment manager, is scheduled to examine the article alleging incitement to insurrection along with his eight fellow managers, reading the article in the Senate floor. Senators will take office as jurors on Tuesday for the trial.

The start of the likely lengthy trial will complicate efforts to negotiate and approve a major aid package, forcing lawmakers to try to reach an agreement before it starts.

“It’s a big bill, it’s a big issue and the question is how much can we do in two weeks, that will be the subject in the next few days,” said Sen. Angus King (I., Maine), who attended the call on Sunday .

In addition to the impeachment trial, senators have yet to reach an agreement on the functioning of the Chamber, which is divided by 50% between the two parties. Vice President Kamala Harris can vote on the tiebreak, giving Democrats a majority by a small margin.

Negotiations were halted after Republicans insisted Democrats pledged not to remove legislative obstruction, which requires 60 votes to bring most projects to the floor. Since it is rare for a party to have 60 or more seats, proponents of the procedural barrier of the supermajority say that this forces the compromise by giving the minority party a voice and some power in the negotiations.

But the obstruction can also lead to an impasse, and there is an impetus among some Democratic lawmakers and activists to reduce or eliminate the 60-vote limit, so that their narrow Senate majority can pass bills more quickly and advance Biden’s agenda. .

Durbin, the second-highest Democrat, said on NBC on Sunday that Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell’s desire for absolute protection from legislative obstruction is a failure. On Friday, Senator John Cornyn (R., Texas) said “there will be no organizational resolution as long as the removal of legislative obstruction is hovering over Congress”.

Some Democrats, skeptical that a bipartisan agreement can be reached, are already asking the president to approve his aid plan in a party vote.

Since most bills require 60 votes to overcome procedural obstacles in the Senate, Biden would need to round 10 Republican votes if all 50 senators who met with Democrats voted en bloc. Using a process known as reconciliation, however, certain legislation linked to the budget would require only 50 votes.

Reconciliation is the most partisan of all political tools: Presidents George W. Bush and Trump enacted tax cuts using reconciliation, and President Barack Obama partly relied on the technique to pass the Affordable Care Act.

Senator Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) On Sunday defended using reconciliation. “What we can’t do is wait weeks and weeks, and months and months, to move on,” Sanders told CNN.

Klain did not say whether the White House would abandon certain provisions, such as pressure for a higher federal minimum wage, to win Republican Party support. “What we want to do is work with Congress, reach out to members of both parties, see what we can do as quickly as possible,” he said.

As for the impeachment of the ex-president, Klain indicated that Biden would not take a stand. “He is not a senator, he will not vote for impeachment, so I think his focus is to be president, not to do the job he used to have, which was to be a United States senator.” Mr. Klain said.

Republicans seem divided over Trump’s sentencing, which could lead to a subsequent vote to prevent him from taking a federal position again.

Romney, the only Republican who voted to condemn Trump in his first impeachment trial, said he was open-minded about current procedures.

“Well, there is no doubt that the impeachment article sent by the House suggests objectionable conduct,” Romney told Fox News. He said he would wait to hear the evidence before deciding how to vote.

In the same program, Senator Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) Said he would vote for absolution. “The first chance I get to vote to end this trial, I will do it because I think it is very bad for America,” he said. He called the trial stupid and counterproductive because it would divide Americans even more.

—Bob Davis and Catherine Lucey contributed to this article.

Write to Kristina Peterson at [email protected] and Andrew Duehren at [email protected]