05/15/20
Senate Republicans have called the bill, which would double aid approved by Congress, 'dead on arrival'.
The United States House of Representatives narrowly cleared the way on Friday to push ahead with a $3 trillion Democratic bill that would double the amount of aid approved by Congress to ease the human and economic toll of the coronavirus pandemic.
United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly news conference with Capitol Hill reporters amid the debate on how best to respond to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic [File: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters]
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her fellow Democrats crafted the far-reaching legislation to help state and local governments and others reeling from a pandemic that has killed more than 87,000 Americans and shut down much of the economy. Senate Republicans say it will be "dead on arrival" in their chamber.
But - with Republicans united in opposition - the bill barely cleared a procedural vote to pave the way for debate.
The vote was 207-199, with 14 Democrats joining Republicans to vote no.
The House measure, called the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, includes $500bn in aid to state governments, another round of direct payments to individuals and families to help stimulate the economy, and hazard pay to healthcare workers and others on the front line of the pandemic.
If passed, it would double the amount of spending Congress has authorised since March to fight the coronavirus.
Republicans said they wanted to wait and see how the previous $3 trillion in coronavirus relief works out - and insisted that protections for corporations against lawsuits must be a priority in any new legislation, something pushed for by Republican President Donald Trump.
Democrats who opposed the bill, many of them moderates, said they would have preferred to negotiate something with Republicans that could pass with bipartisan support.
"In the face of this crisis, [my constituents] expect our government to work together quickly to provide real relief for those who need it most," said Democratic Representative Abigail Spanberger, who represents a Virginia district that backed Republican and then-candidate Trump in 2016.
Every Republican in the Democratic-controlled House voted no.
"It's more like a liberal Christmas card wish list," Representative Tom Cole, a Republican, said during debate on the bill on Friday. "This bill is going nowhere, and nowhere fast."
More:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/...191238424.html