Senate GOP plan could sink $2,000 COVID relief checks
Republicans want to add Section 230 repeal, election probe, as Democrats object
Those $2,000 COVID relief checks passed by the House are in trouble in the Senate. President Trump knows he will lose on his defense bill veto. And a Congressman-Elect has died from the Coronavirus. This is Regular Order for Dec. 30, 2020.
SENATE GOP BLOCKS $2,000 COVID CHECKS. A day after the House approved a bill increasing Coronavirus relief checks from $600 to $2,000 per adult, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday stopped quick approval of that plan on the Senate floor. Democrats slammed the GOP leader, and President Trump blasted the Senate delay as well. "Unless Republicans have a death wish," the President wrote on Twitter, "they must approve the $2000 payments ASAP. $600 IS NOT ENOUGH!"
SENATE GOP ADDS TO COVID CHECKS BILL. Instead of voting on the House-passed $2,000 COVID checks bill, Sen. McConnell unveiled a new 16 page plan. It limits who receives the COVID aid, and adds two items backed by President Trump: a repeal of Sec. 230 on social media, along with an official investigation of the 2020 elections. Democrats made clear they would not accept those changes. "Any move like this by Sen. McConnell would be a blatant attempt to deprive Americans of a $2,000 survival check," said Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer.
TREASURY NOT WAITING FOR SENATE. While Senators wrestled over the $2,000 checks, the Trump Administration announced that the feds would start sending out the $600 checks - approved as part of the new COVID relief law. "These payments may begin to arrive in some accounts by direct deposit as early as tonight and will continue into next week," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday.
SENATE READY TO START VETO DEBATE. While the two parties trade barbs over Coronavirus relief checks, the Senate on Wednesday evening will take the first procedural vote on the President's veto of a major defense policy bill, as President Trump all but admitted defeat yesterday. "Weak and tired Republican “leadership” will allow the bad Defense Bill to pass," the President wrote on Twitter, fuming about the lack of support from GOP lawmakers. It will be his first veto override.
TICK TICK TICK. I don't want to bore you with parliamentary procedure, but the Senate Majority Leader could also use the defense bill veto override debate to make it more difficult for the Senate to hold any votes on the $2,000 COVID checks matter. That’s because the 117th Congress convenes Sunday at 12 noon. If there’s no agreement on the timing of the veto override vote, that Senate debate could theoretically last into the weekend. And that could run out the clock on the 116th Congress.
GOP CONGRESSMAN-ELECT DIES FROM CORONAVIRUS. Just 24 days after winning a runoff election for a seat in Congress, Republican Luke Letlow died from the Coronavirus on Tuesday. The 41 year-old Letlow, a father of two, had been in intensive care in a Shreveport, Louisiana hospital for the past week after his symptoms worsened. Letlow had served as Chief of Staff to retiring Rep. Ralph Abraham (R-LA), and then went back to the Bayou State and won Abraham’s seat in the House.
VIRUS VACCINATION QUESTIONS. President Trump said Tuesday that it's up to the states to deliver the Coronavirus vaccine, not the federal government. That's raising eyebrows with President-Elect Joe Biden, and lawmakers in Congress. "At the current rate we're vaccinating people, experts say it will take more than a decade to vaccinate everyone," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA). "We have to do better." Watch this story. We are seeing more and more news reports about a general lack of planning for vaccinations at the local level.
UPCOMING LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
House is done with votes for 2020.
Senate meets at 3 pm. Vote on a motion to take up the defense bill veto override expected around 5:30 pm.
President Trump is at his Florida retreat.
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"Conference reports may be brought up at any time, any further program will be announced later."
Thank you Jamie. I hope you get thousands of subscribers.
Jamie, Thanks for your reporting... AND SUPER thanks for posting the links to the actual legislation being discussed. I believe that there should be new procedures (rules?, laws?) that require each bill to have ONE stated purpose and stick to that. As we don't have that, I don't see much wrong with Advisory Committee item. An improvement would be to let the party that holds the White House decide if they want their party in the Senate or House pick their members and then the other party in the opposite chamber pick theirs. Either way the membership of the Committee is balanced.
What concerns me about Section 230 is not the impact on FB, Twitter or others but the impact on organizations like libraries who are providing services for those that don't have access otherwise.