Republican leaders in both chambers are struggling to get a bipartisan coronavirus aid and government funding package to the finish line and avert a year-end disaster after President Trump
Donald TrumpMcCarthy offers UC request to revisit foreign spending on Senator GOP omnibus over Trump forgives: “This is rotten to the end” Trump forgives Manafort, Stone and Charles Kushner in the last round MORE unexpectedly expressed last-minute objections to legislation passed by Congress earlier this week.
Washington was taken aback Tuesday night by Trump’s long-standing criticism of the $ 900 billion COVID-19 bailout and the $ 1.4 trillion bus that needs to be signed in the next few days to avoid a government shutdown.
Now, Sen. Lindsey Graham
Lindsey Olin GrahamTrump vetoes defense bill, establishing potential nullification that Barr leaves behind a conflicting legacy at the DOJ Trump overturns aid bill and asks Congress to increase stimulus money MORE (RS.C.), one of Trump’s most loyal allies in the Senate and minority leader in the House Kevin McCarthy
Kevin Owen McCarthyMcCarthy to Offer UC Order to Revisit Foreign Omnibus Spending Defense Overnight: Trump vetoes defense bill by establishing annulment vote | Trump raises objections to government funding, relief package COVID-19 | Trump offers Iran ‘friendly health advice’ as tensions heat up Trump leaves Washington in limbo with threat of relief MORE (R-Calif.) They are trying to save the $ 2.3 trillion package, said GOP sources.
Graham is pushing for a $ 2,000 stimulus check vote, rather than direct payments of $ 600 in the bipartisan bill, and the end of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act that protects social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter of lawsuits for content posted on their websites. Trump on Wednesday vetoed the National Defense Authorization Law because, among other things, it does not include the repeal of Section 230.
A Republican Senate aide said it makes sense for Graham to be involved in efforts to save the collective measure from the coronavirus, given the senator’s close relationship with Trump, who recently criticized other Senate Republicans.
Trump expressed frustration with the Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell
Addison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellTrump vetoes defense bill, setting up potential CNN Smerconish nullification praises Trump for $ 1,000 relief checks: “The most effective thing he’s done” post-election Republicans waiting to see what Trump does in the package relief MORE (R-Ky.) And Whip of the majority John Thune
John Randolph ThuneNoem dismisses Thune’s challenge after Trump criticizes Senator Trump attacks Thune: ‘He will have his primacy in 2022’ Night defense: Congress plans session to overturn potential Trump veto | Miller takes an unannounced trip to Afghanistan MORE (RS.D.) for not fighting anymore to overturn the results of the presidential election. Trump even tweeted on Tuesday that Thune would face a major challenge in 2022 when he stands for re-election.
Graham said on Wednesday that Congress should vote on the wording of increasing the size of stimulus checks and Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
“I support President @ realDonaldTrump’s demand to increase direct payments to suffering Americans to $ 2,000 per person. I also support your call to end section 230 Big Tech legal liability protection. Let’s vote, ”he tweeted.
But such a package – increasing the size of the stimulus check and exposing social media platforms to liability for content – would face bipartisan opposition, as many Republicans are concerned about the growing deficit and many Democrats do not want to punish technology firms.
On the Chamber side, McCarthy told Republican Party colleagues during a conference call on Wednesday afternoon that he spoke to Trump and is working to counter a request by the speaker Nancy Pelosi
Nancy PelosiMcCarthy offers UC request to revisit foreign omnibus spending Defense Overnight: Trump vetoes defense bill by establishing annulment vote | Trump raises objections to government funding, relief package COVID-19 | Trump offers Iran ‘friendly health advice’ as tensions heat up Trump leaves Washington in limbo with threat of relief MORE (D-Calif.) Plans to do in the House on Thursday morning to increase the size of stimulus checks from $ 600 to $ 2,000. McCarthy’s proposal aims to cut spending, two sources familiar with the discussions told The Hill.
McCarthy outlined his strategy on Wednesday night in a letter to Republican colleagues, accusing Democrats of “selective hearing” because they are taking advantage of Trump’s demand for greater stimulus checks, but ignoring his complaints about unnecessary spending.
“They conveniently ignored the concerns expressed by the president, and shared by our constituents, that we must reexamine how our tax dollars are spent abroad,” he wrote. “Thus, Republicans will offer a unanimous request for consent to revisit the Omnibus State and Foreign Operations title, so that we can fully address the concerns in question.”
A House Republican who was on the call on Wednesday said Republican leaders would prefer to offer spending cuts instead of more than doubling the size of stimulus checks in order to placate Trump.
“Pelosi is obviously doing politics, so this is counter-action. It’s basically cutting out the things the president was complaining about without making the extra money [for stimulus checks]”, Said the legislator.
Democrats took advantage of Trump’s criticism of the bill to pressure McCarthy and McConnell to support $ 2,000 stimulus checks.
“America needs checks for $ 2,000. Senator McConnell: Americans need help NOW, ”Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer
Chuck SchumerTrump and Pelosi to merge for $ 1,000 Schumer relief checks on Trump’s call for K in direct payments: Progressive Democrats signal support for Trump’s higher direct payment request MORE (NY) tweeted on Wednesday afternoon.
Pelosi said he would seek unanimous consent during a 9 am pro forma session on Thursday to present a stand-alone project to increase the size of stimulus checks to $ 2,000.
“If the president really wants to join us in payments of $ 2,000, he must ask leader McCarthy to agree to our request for unanimous consent,” wrote Pelosi in a letter to fellow Democrats.
McCarthy told Republican lawmakers during the call on Wednesday afternoon that Republicans would block Pelosi’s request. Republican lawmakers say they are increasingly concerned about the $ 3.1 trillion federal deficit.
McCarthy told colleagues that Trump has not yet decided whether to veto the huge COVID relief and bus package, which he could hold on to his desk until after the new Congress meets on January 3. If Trump does not take action on the legislation during the 10 days he designated by the Constitution, excluding Sundays, it would result in a pocket veto and Congress could not vote to annul it.
Instead, lawmakers at the new Congress would have to start negotiating another package, something leaders want to avoid, as it took more than seven months to reach agreement on the bill passed earlier this week.
Trump’s opposition to the bill caught lawmakers in both chambers by surprise, largely because the Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin
Steven MnuchinMcCarthy will offer UC request to revisit foreign bus spending Republicans vent about surprise Trump moves in relief COVID-19 Trump imposes new sanctions on Belarus for electoral fraud and human rights abuses MORE and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows
Mark MeadowsA growing number of Republican lawmakers supports the Trump Electoral College challenge calls Bolton ‘one of the most idiotic people in Washington’ after the former aide analyzes the martial law report Trump rejects the conversation about martial law: ‘False news’ MORE helped negotiate the package.
The $ 600 stimulus checks, which Trump now claims are too small, were handed over to Democratic leaders by Mnuchin in a phone call on December 8.
Congressman Don Bacon (R-Neb.) Told his Republican Party colleagues on a phone call on Wednesday that he felt “Trump threw us under the bus”.
“The president was updated on this bill at every step of the Republican Party leadership. The COVID supplement is a good compromise and the president must accept it, ”said Bacon in a public statement after the call, maintaining his comments.
An impending deadline that has Republicans shaking hands is Monday night, when federal funding expires if Trump doesn’t sign the coronavirus relief package and overheads in law. This would result in a government shutdown.
But before that comes the so-called precipice of unemployment insurance on Saturday, when two key benefit programs for millions of unemployed Americans are about to expire.
Another major headache for Republican Party leaders is Trump’s veto of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which Congress has enacted for 59 consecutive years.
McConnell had already scheduled the Senate to return to Washington for possible votes on December 29, when he could begin the process of creating a vote to override the veto on the defense bill. But Republican leaders in the Senate say they will only act if two-thirds of the House votes to override the veto.
McConnell, who was criticized by Trump for not joining his efforts to overturn election results in several undecided states, remained out of the spotlight on Wednesday, giving his Republican colleagues little sense of what to expect.
“Everyone is exhausted by the end of the year,” said an adviser to the Republican Party in the Senate, who predicted that McConnell would try to override the veto on the coronavirus overhead and relief package. “It is a difficult vote for half a dozen to a dozen Republicans, but it is not a difficult vote.”
“There are at least 19 Republicans who will override both vetoes,” said the aide on the Senate’s annulment calculations.