Update:
The House officially passed the bill increasing stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000. The bill passed in a 275 – 134 vote so it was over 2/3 which is needed to pass the bill at this point.
The bill will now head to the Senate where it is much less clear what will happen. It is expected that the bill will be voted on tomorrow in the Senate.
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Original article
In case you missed the news last night, President Trump signed the coronavirus stimulus and government funding package into law.
“Pelosi delayed and damaged the country for months, but @realDonaldTrump just signed COVID Relief into law,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, tweeted Sunday.
“Paycheck Protection is renewed. Thousands of small businesses will be able to keep doors open and workers paid. Thank you, Mr. President, for putting people over politics.”
It was a move that came after many lawmakers were becoming very vocal about their desire to see the president quickly sign the bill into action and to deal with the stimulus check issue at a later time.
Reportedly, Trump made a deal with senators that if he signed the bill, they would commit to voting on increasing the stimulus checks from $600 payments to $2,000 payments.
Presumably, the president is working to persuade his Republican counterparts to support the increase in payments.
“Now, the President must immediately call on Congressional Republicans to end their obstruction and to join him and Democrats in support of our stand-alone legislation to increase direct payment checks to $2,000, which will be brought to the Floor tomorrow,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Sunday night.
“Every Republican vote against this bill is a vote to deny the financial hardship that families face and to deny the American people the relief they need,” she added.
This new stimulus increase to $2,000 is truly a standalone bill with no other provisions tied to it. It is only a few pages long and so this vote should be a very straightforward process when it happens today.
As far as how the votes will go, I don’t think anyone knows for sure what is going to happen but it seems that a lot of people still doubt there will be enough Republican votes for the increase.
Although some prominent GOP lawmakers have voiced support for the checks like Josh Hawley of Missouri and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a lot of Republicans have still remained silent.
Others have been explicit about their opposition to more checks like Senator Rand Paul whoo said most Americans didn’t need a stimulus check.
“I think giving money to people, though, who are already working—look, my kids are working and don’t need a check. They’re not rich, but they don’t need a check,” he said.
“And most working Americans don’t need a check right now.”
(Surveys indicate that most Americans state they do need these checks.)
Some also speculate that now that Trump signed the bill into law, Republicans will feel less pressure to vote for the booster checks.
That might hold true to some extent but there is also the opposing pressure coming from the Georgia runoff elections that many feel could be key to getting these checks passed.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer stated that no Democrats in the Senate will object.
“The House will pass a bill to give Americans $2,000 checks,” He said in a Sunday tweet. “Then I will move to pass it in the Senate. No Democrats will object. Will Senate Republicans?”
The stimulus bill will be voted on via a suspension measure which means that a 2/3 super majority vote will be needed.
The House will meet at 2 PM today and votes are expected to happen after 3 PM but I’m not sure what time the Senate is scheduled to vote. It could happen later today or perhaps tomorrow.
Related
Trump signs coronavirus stimulus bill
Stimulus benefits expire as huge vote approaches
More support growing for $2,000 stimulus checks
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and creator of the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned full-time credit card rewards/travel expert and has earned and redeemed millions of miles to travel the globe. Since 2014, his content has been featured in major publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, Forbes, CNBC, US News, and Business Insider. Find his full bio here.