Joe Biden hopes to sign an appropriations bill next week. The U.S. Senate has approved the third $1.9 trillion economic stimulus package aimed at combating the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
The debate on the plan, proposed by Joe Biden, lasted more than a day and ended with a narrow margin of one vote. The previous two aid packages were approved under Donald Trump, and both were approved without delay by Republicans who controlled the White House and the Senate at the time.
Currently, the Senate is evenly divided – 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats (including two independent senators who caucus with the Democratic Party). None of the Republicans supported the bill, and the Democrats couldn’t afford to lose a single vote.
The most difficult part was winning the support of Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who holds conservative views by Democratic Party standards. He demanded a $100 reduction in weekly payments to the unemployed and ultimately held firm to his position. In his view, the originally proposed $400 a week would have been an incentive not to look for work.
Debates and votes on Republican amendments to extend the process went on for 27 hours, with senators not even breaking for the night. As a result, the bill passed with a minimal majority of votes – 50 senators voted in favor, 49 against. One Republican was absent during the vote.
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell criticized the document, saying that the Senate had never decided the fate of two trillion dollars so quickly. The United States has been hit hard by the pandemic, with nearly 29 million people sickened and more than 520,000 deaths – more than American casualties from the two World Wars and the Vietnam War combined.
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As part of the aid package, the majority of Americans – those with incomes not exceeding $75,000 per year for individuals or $150,000 for married couples – will receive one-time payments of $1,400. In addition, nearly $2 trillion is proposed to be distributed as follows: $350 billion to state and local governments, $130 billion to schools, $49 billion to expand Covid-19 testing systems and virus research, and $14 billion for vaccine procurement and distribution.
The centerpiece of the aid plan, many say, is the extension of unemployment benefits through September. If the package hadn’t been approved by the Senate, payments would have stopped in March.
Small and medium-sized enterprises will also receive support: 25 billion – for bars and restaurants, 15 billion – for airlines, 8 billion – for airports, and about 35 billion – for other transport companies and services.
Now the document with the new amendments must be approved again by the House of Representatives and signed by President Biden before March 14, when the unemployment benefits expire. On Capitol Hill, there is confidence that there will be no problems at any of the remaining stages.
A 50-vote supermajority in the Senate allows Democrats to pass appropriations bills and confirm nominees to various executive and judicial positions. Any other legislation without the support of at least 10 Republicans is virtually impossible to pass because senators can filibuster – a debate that requires the same 60 votes to end.