By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 20th, 2023
Democrats unveiled a new coronavirus rescue bill that would direct more than $3 trillion to state and local governments and launch a range of other initiatives.
House Democrats released their latest bill yesterday made in order to weaken the coronavirus pandemic’s destructive impact on the overall economy and health-care system.
Party leaders are expected to vote on the more than 1,800-page package on Friday, together with a plan to enable proxy voting on legislation during the crisis.
Newly Offered Coronavirus Rescue Bill
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stated Congress had a “momentous opportunity” to realize what people’s needs really are, arguing that “not acting is the most expensive course” as the Republican Party becomes tired of taxpayer spending.
According to a summary this includes teh following measures among others:
- Nearly $1 trillion in financial assistance for state and local governments;
- A second round of direct payments of $1,200 per capita, and up to $6,000 for a household;
- $75 billion for coronavirus testing and contact following — a main attempt to reopen businesses;
- An extension of the $600 per week federal unemployment insurance benefit through January (the provision approved in March is set to expire after July);
- $175 billion in rent, mortgage and utility assistance.
Largest Emergency Spending Measure in the U.S. History
Democrats say increasing coronavirus infection rates and an unemployment rate that haven’t been seen since the Great Depression immediately need adding to an already extraordinary emergency government response.
The new bill will cost more than $3 trillion, which easily caps the $2 trillion cost of the late March stimulus package – the largest emergency spending measure in the U.S. history.
If it passes the House, the plan written by democrats will face certain barricades in the Senate. It is still not known the exact time when both Democrats and Republicans would step down on a proposal for more financial assistance, as the GOP lessens the need to spend extra federal money on a rescue bill now.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters:
“I’m in discussion, we all are with the administration, if we reach a decision along with the administration to move to another phase, that’ll be the time to interact with the Democrats. But what you’ve seen in the House is not something designed to deal with reality, but designed to deal with aspirations.”
In a tweeted statement, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called the bill a “liberal wishlist” and “waste of taxpayer time.”
House Democrats just released an 1,800-page liberal wishlist that was crafted behind closed doors and includes bailouts for blue states and giveaways for billionaires. This spectacle has 𝐧𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 of becoming law.
What a waste of taxpayer time.
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) May 12, 2020
McConnell also took this argument with Pelosi’s priority of passing relief for state and local governments, which could soon have to phase out payrolls and programs as they spend more money and take in less revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic. Democrats, on the other hand, have been obstructing the GOP goal of passing accountability protections for businesses as they reopen in the situation when the coronavirus outbreak is not even nearly at its end.
According to the latest information, the U.S. now has more than 1.4 million people infected with the coronavirus. The death toll reached 83,425 people while 296,746 people have been reportedly recovered.
