Fed up Republican lawmakers are beginning to support the possibility of a executive order issued by President Trump because Congress continues to make “no progress” in the ongoing coronavirus relief negotiations, as Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy said.
“We’ve made no progress in the negotiations,” Kennedy told “The Story” on Tuesday. “[It] Distresses me to say that, but the reason we’ve made no progress is because Senator [Chuck] Schumer and Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi’s position … is Speaker Pelosi’s three trillion dollar HEROES act, take it or leave it.”
“You don’t have to be Einstein’s cousin to understand that Speaker Pelosi’s bill is not going to pass the United States Senate, nor should it,” he added.
Lawmakers began negotiating the terms of the newest stimulus package last week hoping to reach an agreement before the enhanced unemployment benefits, which provided an additional $600 per week to those without work, expired last Friday.
Democrats want the next package to continue the $600 weekly payments, but Republicans are concerned that in some cases this results in people collecting more money than they earned from their jobs, disincentivizing them to return to work when possible.
The Republican HEALS Act, which bears a $1 trillion price tag compared with $3 trillion for the Democratic HEROES Act, provides an extra $200 a week.
Kennedy said Pelosi’s HEROES act “would permanently change… our election laws, our immigration laws, and would offer free abortions. It would let prisoners go,” Kennedy said. “It would bail out every mismanaged state pension plan, and she knows, and Senator Schumer knows, that that bill is not going to pass.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., slammed Republicans after Democrats rejected two Republican proposals that would extend unemployment compensation while Congress continues to negotiate the terms of the bill. Schumer accused Republicans of “dragging their feet” and engaging in a political stunt.
“I would say at this juncture and with respect to this particular moment, Senator Schumer is very well-versed in the stuff that he’s making up,” Kennedy said.
Read the rest at: No Progress
