House votes to increase stimulus checks to $2,000. Here’s what we know
The U.S. House of Representatives voted Monday to pass a bill increasing stimulus checks to $2,000 after President Donald Trump urged lawmakers to provide Americans with more direct assistance.
The bill would boost direct payments in the coronavirus relief deal from $600. The vote came a day after Trump signed the relief and government spending bill into law, averting a government shutdown set to begin Tuesday.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Sunday that he would bring the proposal to the Senate after the vote in the House.
“No Democrats will object. Will Senate Republicans?” he tweeted.
Trump previously called the coronavirus relief package passed by both the House and Senate a “disgrace” and temporarily refused to sign it.
House Republicans blocked a bill on Dec. 24 from Democrats, who tried to pass the proposal for $2,000 checks by unanimous consent during a brief session. The effort failed because House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, didn’t approve it.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, said the House would be brought back to session Monday. The bill required two-thirds support in order to pass under a House procedure that permits the chamber to vote more quickly on legislation, CNBC reported.
The House voted to pass the bill Monday evening, with 275 members voting in favor to 134 voting against, including two Democrats.
“Now, the President must immediately call on Congressional Republicans to end their obstruction and to join him and Democrats in support of our stand-alone legislation to increase direct payment checks to $2,000, which will be brought to the Floor tomorrow,” Pelosi said in a statement Sunday.
“Every Republican vote against this bill is a vote to deny the financial hardship that families face and to deny the American people the relief they need,” she continued.
The $900 billion coronavirus package, passed by Congress last week, comes about nine months after the first stimulus deal was reached — following numerous delays and debates among congressional and White House leaders about what the legislation should contain.
The aid package includes $600 direct payments for millions of Americans making up to $75,000 a year but is less generous than the $2 trillion CARES Act, which provided $1,200 payments for individuals who met that same income threshold.
In a video posted to Twitter on Dec. 22, Trump demanded Congress increase the “ridiculously low” $600 direct payments included in the most recent bill to $2,000 per person or $4,000 per couple and called other provisions in the legislation “wasteful spending and much more.”
Trump doubled down on his criticism on Saturday, tweeting: “I simply want to get our great people $2000, rather than the measly $600 that is now in the bill.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement Sunday that he was “glad the American people will receive this much-needed assistance as our nation continues battling this pandemic.” McConnell didn’t mention Trump’s comments or the proposal to increase checks to $2,000.
This story was originally published December 28, 2020 at 9:25 AM with the headline "House votes to increase stimulus checks to $2,000. Here’s what we know."