The latest COVID-19 stimulus package passed by Congress this week would send $600 to Americans by the end of the year, but President Donald J. Trump has threatened to veto the bill when it arrives on his desk for signature.
“I am asking Congress to amend this bill and increase the ridiculously low $600 to $2,000, or $4,000 for a couple,” Trump said in a video posted to Twitter Tuesday night.
“It’s a joke,” Chant’e Catt, an off-campus housing coordinator at Humboldt State University in Northern California, told The New York Times. “It’s a slap in the face, and it’s really disrespectful for somebody who lost their job.”
“We bail out companies and corporations all the time,” 22-year-old David Caron from Boston, Mass. said on Saturday. “When it comes to helping the individual, we are left to hang dry.”
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi didn’t disagree. She said she is ready for the $2,000 stimulus to go through immediately.
“Republicans repeatedly refused to say what amount the President wanted for direct checks,” Pelosi tweeted. “At last, the President has agreed to $2,000 — Democrats are ready to bring this to the Floor this week by unanimous consent. Let’s do it!”
A senior Democratic aide told CNBC that House Democrats will attempt to pass a standalone bill for $2,000 direct payments on Thursday, though it is unclear whether this would pass a Republican-led Senate, or even receive the unanimous consent necessary in the House.
Watch the video below.
See additional reactions below.