Sen. McConnell: Senate GOP Looking at Another Round of Direct Payments to Americans
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell provided a broad outline of what to expect in the next Republican coronavirus proposal, including another round of stimulus checks to Americans.
In a Senate floor speech on Tuesday, the Kentucky Republican didn’t give details about who would receive the money but said he would unveil the proposal soon after exchanging ideas with the Trump administration, according to The Hill.
“The majority will be laying down another historic proposal very soon,” he said.
Most Republicans want a lower income threshold to qualify for the next round of stimulus checks; the cap for the first round of payments was $99,000, ABC News reported.
“Speaking of building on what worked in the [Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security] Act, we want another round of direct payments, direct payments to help American families keep driving our national comeback,” McConnell said Tuesday.
During the two-week July 4 recess, McConnell referenced an income ceiling of $40,000 per year for the direct payments.
McConnell announced in his Tuesday speech the major pillars of the forthcoming Republican bill will include jobs, health care, children in school and liability protections.
Republicans will include $105 billion in help for schools, as well as another round of Paycheck Protection Program loans, according to McConnell.
“The American job market needs another shot of adrenaline,” he said. “Republicans are laser-focused on getting American workers their jobs back.”
McConnell added that Republicans want to reimburse businesses for personal protective equipment expenses and structural changes that have had to be made to protect workers and customers.
The Senate majority leader did not touch on President Donald Trump’s payroll tax cut push, which has divided Republicans and the White House, in his speech.
“We’re going to be discussing it,” McConnell said when he was asked about the omission. “As you know, the secretary of the treasury is coming up for lunch, and we’re all going to see if we can get on the same page.”
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were scheduled to meet with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday.
Democrats want more than the package McConnell is proposing –McConnell has told Republicans he wants the bill to cost in the area of $1 trillion, according to The Hill — including additional unemployment benefits.
The Senate majority leader said that he knows he will need to negotiate with the Democrats but he didn’t believe there was anything in the bill that “our Democratic colleagues should not happily support.”
“The United States of America was not built for a defensive crouch,” McConnell said, according to ABC News.
“We need to stand up an educational system and an economy that works for workers and families at the same time. We need to find the right sort of middle ground.”
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