Connect with us

Contributor News

Senate Democrats Block Coronavirus Relief Bill, McConnell Responds

Published

on

Americans anticipating a coronavirus relief check from Uncle Sam will have to wait a while longer after Senate Democrats, in the 12th hour of negotiations, blocked the “CARES Act”, a package intended to prop up a pandemic-stricken economy and help American families.

In a split 47-47 vote along partisan lines yesterday, Senate Democrats succeeded in blocking a bill that would have sent a $3,000 check to the average American family.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) admonished his colleagues from the Senate floor, partially blaming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for the breakdown of negotiations saying,

“All of a sudden, the Democratic leader and the Speaker of the House shows up, and we’re back to square one. We’re fiddling here, fiddling with the emotions of the American people, fiddling with the markets, fiddling with our health care… She’s the Speaker of the House, not the Speaker of the Senate. We don’t have one. We were doing just fine until that intervention.”

He continued by impressing the urgency upon his Democratic colleagues saying,

“The American people are watching this spectacle. I’m told the futures market is down 5 percent. I’m also told that’s when trading stops. So the notion that we have time to play games here with the American economy and the American people is utterly absurd. The American people expect us to act tomorrow, and I want everybody to fully understand if we aren’t able to act tomorrow, it will be because of our colleagues on the other side continuing to dither when the country expects us to come together and address this problem.”

Absent for the vote was Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), who announced on Sunday that he tested positive for the coronavirus, and Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Mitt Romney (R-UT) who are self-isolating due to their interacting with Senator Paul.

Continue Reading
Advertisement