Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn’t appear to be following the suggestion of President-elect Joe Biden, who, on Monday, urged Congress to pay the $3.4 trillion HEROES Act. A day after Biden’s push, McConnell didn’t hold back in blasting the Democratic stimulus plan.
As policymakers continued to discuss a potential relief bill, the two sides continued to remain a part on coming to terms after months of deliberation. McConnell, who has previously stated he wouldn’t support any bill in the trillions, called the HEROES Act “unserious,” even noting that some moderate Democrats were not even in favor of it. In his tweet, McConnell said the plan would have had huge tax cuts for rich people but only in “blue states,” adding that the Democrats have not put their priorities in the correct order.
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House Democrats’ so-called “HEROES Act” is so unserious that it was condemned by the Speaker’s own moderate Democrats the instant she put it out.
Huge tax cuts for rich people in blue states, but no second round of the Paycheck Protection Program? Those are their priorities?
— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) November 17, 2020
With a stimulus plan remaining as distant as ever, the coronavirus places an immense amount of strain on the country. Many major cities have begun to backtrack on their reopening phases and states across the map have placed tighter restrictions closely resembling the measures taken back in the spring at the start of the pandemic. Because of everything going on between rising daily case numbers and small businesses being impacted with more and more restrictions, the president-elect has been vocal about putting financial help together as quickly as possible.
The former Vice President said the country could be heading toward a “dark winter” and that things will only get tougher from here on out. Biden also tweeted on Tuesday about the HEROES Act after McConnell and Congress shot it down. He called passing it the “right thing to do.” According to him, the country can only begin to build itself back up after “we shut the virus and deliver economic relief to workers and businesses.” The HEROES Act was passed six months ago by the House of Representatives but since getting through that hurdle, has remained at a standstill at the Congress level. With the country in a lame duck period after the election, the odds of a bill being passed before Inauguration Day appears unlikely.
