Mitch McConnell introduces bill for $2,000 stimulus checks after furious Trump tells Republicans to ‘do the right thing’
MITCH McConnell has introduced legislation that would send Americans $2,000 stimulus checks - after furious President Trump told Republicans to "do the right thing".
The Senate Majority leader's proposal on Tuesday links payment of the checks - a leap up from the $600 payments already signed off by Trump last week - with curbs on social media firms and a review of "election fraud" alleged by the White House.
But Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat who has seen the new planned bill, slammed the proposals.
"It will not pass the House and cannot become law," Schumer said in a statement, referring to the Democratic-majority House of Representatives.
He added: "Senator McConnell knows how to make $2,000 survival checks reality and he knows how to kill them."
Section 230 provides immunity for social media companies as it rules they are not publishers - a provision the Trump administration wants to scrap over what the President sees as extreme anti-Republican bias online.
McConnell's bill also pledges to set up an election fraud study, according to Schumer's statement, adding credence to the President's as-yet unsubstantiated claims that the 2020 election was fraudulently won by Democrat Joe Biden.
McConnell's office has not publicly announced the new bill, which comes after a furious Trump told GOP leaders they have a "death wish" unless they increase stimulus payments.
Trump was slamming McConnell's block of a Senate vote on an earlier bill that would send $2,000 stimulus checks to Americans, saying the current $600 checks are "not enough."
McConnell blocked Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer from putting the House-backed bill up for a unanimous consent vote.
Trump wrote: "Unless Republicans have a death wish, and it is also the right thing to do, they must approve the $2000 payments ASAP. $600 IS NOT ENOUGH!"
Earlier, there had been some hope that momentum could propel the bill through the Senate after Missouri Sen Josh Hawley revealed his party had enough members to join with Democrats to pass the checks.
Hawley tweeted: 'We've got the votes. Let's vote today."
McConnell, however, soon signaled Hawley's small contingent still faced an uphill battle. Most GOP senators have been unwilling to shell out the money needed for $2,000 checks.
McConnell said Tuesday afternoon he would work to bring "into focus" the Trump-backed checks among other priorities, and appeared to suggest he might tie any vote on checks to a less popular provision in an effort to stop it from passing.
Hawley's optimistic tweet came after Georgia Sens David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler both tweeted support for the $2,000 checks late this morning.
Perdue and Loeffler are locked in tight races for their Georgia seats and face voters in a special election set for Jan. 6.
Maine Republican Susan Collins later gave limited support to the effort, but reportedly said she had concerns about some of the checks going to upper-income Americans.
Trump has backed the checks for days and cranked up his support Tuesday, tweeting his approval of Bernie Sander's bid to filibuster the Senate if a vote was not held on the stimulus checks.
Sanders announced his intentions to slow the Senate's vote, potentially until the new year, if leaders do not hold a vote regarding the increase in the relief funds given to Americans.
President Trump tweeted this morning: ", not $600! They have suffered enough from the China virus!!!" The call echoed an earlier message that was written above a tweet detailing Sander's plans.
The National Defense Authorization Act has now been sent to the Republican-led Senate, where GOP leaders have previously argued against paying high levels of direct aid to the public.
Senator Sander's told an interviewer on Monday evening: "McConnell and the Senate want to expedite the override vote and I understand that.
"But I'm not going to allow that to happen unless there is a vote, no matter how long that takes, on the $2,000 direct payment."
"The American people are desperate, and the Senate has got to do its job before leaving town," Sanders said.
"It would be unconscionable, especially after the House did the right thing, for the Senate to simply leave Washington without voting on this."
His spokesman also confirmed he will object to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell setting up a vote on the veto override of the bill, until the proposed aid increase is voted on.
The $740billion bill was branded a "disgrace" by President Trump earlier this month,
The House of Representatives dealt the President a devastating blow in his final days of presidency, after they voted to override Trump's veto.
After the vote of 322 to 87, slammed the veto as "reckless" and urged the President to "end his eleventh-hour campaign of chaos".
The NDAA was passed in early December with a 84 to 13 majority, with Sanders originally voting against it.
'ROBUST SUPPORT'
Sanders received further support from Senator Ed Markey, who echoed his plans to slow down the defense bill in a bid to increase the coronavirus stimulus cheques as part of the $2.3 trillion relief package.
He tweeted: "I will be joining @BernieSanders in blocking the defense bill until we get a vote on $2000 in direct cash relief.
"That relief passed in the House today with 44 Republicans voting for it. Senate Republicans must do the same and get the American people the help they need."
On Monday, the House of Representatives passed a measure to increase stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000 per person.
The 275 votes for passage meant the stimulus proposal narrowly exceeded the two-thirds of votes cast needed.
A total of 130 , two independents and two opposed the increased checks on Monday.
The House Speaker also called on Republicans to back the president’s call to
"We need to ensure robust support for state and local government to distribute and administer a vaccine, keep workers employed and prevent devastating service cuts," Pelosi said, "and we must do so as soon as possible."
President-elect Joe Biden also showed his support for the increased payments.
When asked at the end of an event in Wilmington, Delaware, whether he supported expanding the coronavirus checks to $2,000, he replied: "Yes."
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A Treasury official said the department has planned on sending
Should the Senate approve the $2,000 direct payments, the Treasury Department would then add to the already issued funds.
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Increasing the checks would cost $464 billion, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation, which prepares cost estimates for legislation before Congress.