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Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders warned on Sunday that Democrats were prepared to use a rare Congressional process to push President Biden’s $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.
Sanders, the new chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, told CNN that Democrats will use the move – known as reconciliation – “as soon as possible,” if Republicans do not support the bill.
“What we can’t do is wait weeks, weeks and months to move forward. We must act now, ”he said on“ the state of the Union ”.
The procedural tactic would allow legislation to pass in the Senate with a simple majority of 50, plus Vice President Kamala Harris’ tiebreaker, rather than the 60 votes normally required.
Republicans used Senate rule in 2017 to pass a tax cut bill and to attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, said the party would use reconciliation to “pass legislation that working families in this country desperately need right now.”
“I criticized Republicans for using reconciliation to give tax breaks to billionaires…” he said. “And if they want to criticize me for helping feed the hungry children – or the seniors in this country who are isolated and alone and don’t have enough food, they can criticize me.
“I think this is the appropriate step forward.”
Sanders underscored the urgency of adopting the COVID-19 package, saying, “If we don’t respond now, yeah, I believe in two years Republicans will be like, ‘Hey, you elected these guys, they didn’t do anything, vote for us, ‘and they will win. “
“The American people are suffering and they want us to act.”
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