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President Donald Trump’s advisers have dissuaded him from calling for direct payments of $ 2,000 to Americans in the upcoming federal coronavirus bailout because it could have derailed the Capitol Hill relief negotiations, the report reported. Washington Post.
The newspaper cited two sources close to the events.
The Post reported that Trump had a phone call with allies in which he said he wanted the stimulus payments to be “at least” $ 1,200 and possibly as high as $ 2,000. Congressional leaders draft $ 900 billion relief plan with $ 600 in direct payments to Americans, half of the $ 1,200 distributed in March and April as part of an initial case package pandemic.
Trump was said to have been expressing his desire when White House officials told him the move would capsize negotiations between leading Republicans and Democrats, which appear likely to last until the weekend. Republicans are trying to keep the price of a relief program under $ 1 trillion, and larger out-of-pocket payments could raise the cost of the legislation far beyond that.
An anonymous source told the Post that “the assistants were really frantic, saying, ‘We can’t do this; it will explode the negotiations. “”
Ben Williamson, a White House spokesman, told the Post that Trump was supporting large relief payments for struggling Americans.
“The president has heard from Americans across the country who are suffering through no fault of their own, and he’s made it clear that he wants the next round of relief to include significant number stimulus checks,” he said. declared. “We are working with Congress to come to an agreement that can be passed as quickly as possible.”
As the election draws near, Trump has called for a major relief package and has at times suggested he could support one larger than the $ 2.2 trillion Democrats want. But Republicans did not follow suit and repeatedly threw cold water on his demands. Instead, they chose to push for a $ 500 billion relief package that Democrats have twice blocked.
The president’s stance on coronavirus relief has changed dramatically over time, and he has remained largely silent on the subject since his election defeat to Joe Biden. Trump, however, recently stated publicly that he still supports large out-of-pocket payments. “Right now, I want to see checks – for more money than they talk about – going to people,” he told Fox News in an interview that aired Sunday.
The White House entered relief negotiations last week with a $ 916 billion offer, which included $ 600 in direct payments. Democrats, however, criticized him for excluding federal unemployment benefits.
On Capitol Hill, Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri and Independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont made calls to include direct payments, which were initially excluded from a bipartisan plan currently under consideration. Progressive lawmakers in the House have also stepped up their drive to include large payments in the next relief package.
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