Republican Senator Ron Johnson has blocked efforts to pass a second round of coronavirus stimulus checks, citing concerns about the country’s debt.
Republican Senator Josh Hawley, whose name will be announced as a 2024 presidential candidate, worked with Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to include direct payments to Americans in the next Congressional aid package. The second stimulus tests would be distributed according to the same guidelines as the CARES Act.
“I propose what every senator has supported this year. … What I’m proposing will give workers in my state and across the country a chance … to get back on their feet, “Hawley said in the Senate on Friday.
Hawley needed every Senator’s cooperation to get approval, but Johnson declined to cite the country’s debt and an approach similar to the first CARES bill.
“What I’m afraid we’re going to do with this bipartisan package, and what the Missouri Senator is talking about, is the same thing, a shotgun approach,” said Johnson. “We will not have learned the lessons of our very urgent, very urgent earlier aid packages.”
Some find it strange that Johnson should express his concern about the debt, considering that national debt rose 36% over President Trump’s four-year tenure. During Trump’s 2016 campaign, he pledged to clear the debt within eight years.
Johnson’s objection throws a wrench into negotiations, which last all week. To prevent the government from closing, the legislature combined the next aid package with a state spending law, which must be approved by Friday.
According to The Hill, Hawley said he won’t allow a bill until he knows what’s in the agreement. Hawley also wants an assurance that there is direct relief in every package that is successful.
Hawley said he and Sanders would return to the ground Friday to try to re-hand their bill.
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