No stimulus checks until Biden takes office?

At this point, there’s a high likelihood that a new stimulus package is going to go out.

In fact, it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that a deal could be made this week and passed shortly thereafter.

The looming question has been will this package contain more stimulus checks?

The initial $900 billion proposal that has gained a lot of momentum among lawmakers does not include stimulus checks.

But we heard from someone lawmakers that they were pushing pretty hard for more stimulus checks.

And it even sounded like Biden was on board for trying to push them through when he said “it would be better” if the stimulus package included checks for Americans.

But then we heard that excluding stimulus checks from this $900 billion bill was pretty much necessary to get other forms of aid out such as unemployment benefits.

 “The Democrats have always wanted a larger number, but we were told we couldn’t get anything through the Republicans, except this $900 billion level,” Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin said.

And now it’s looking pretty clear that more stimulus checks will not come out until after Joe Biden has gone into office.

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin seems to think that stimulus checks could still happen but that they would be included in a package that gets figured out later on.

He said Biden could “put together a different proposal that takes us further down the road for more recovery.”

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner agreed with Manchin.

“Those who want the direct stimulus checks, that will be something that a President-elect Biden will grapple with,” he said.

So it looks like lawmakers are likely going to punt on more stimulus checks.

If Democrats end up winning the Georgia run-off and taking control of the Senate, I think it’s pretty much a given that more stimulus checks will be going out, probably pretty soon after inauguration.

But in the more likely event that Republicans maintain control, the road to getting more stimulus checks is more uncertain.

It’s not an unwinnable situation since we know several Republican senators have already come out in support of more stimulus checks.

But I bet there would have to be some serious compromises that would need to be made for it to happen.

It’s possible that some of the ongoing and upcoming lockdowns may have a negative effect on the economy and that lawmakers will change their tune on stimulus checks once that happens.

But it’s also possible that the economy continues to recover pretty strong as vaccines come out such that more checks don’t appear to be necessary to many lawmakers.

It’s tough to call at this point but at least we have a real shot at seeing a large stimulus bill getting passed with some key benefits.

H/T

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