Trump Threatens COVID-19 Relief Deal, Calls for $2,000 Direct Payments to Americans

President Trump Meets With Bipartisan Group Of Senators On Immigration

(Photo : Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla)
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: U.S. President Donald Trump (R) presides over a meeting about immigration with Republican and Democrat members of Congress in the Cabinet Room at the White House January 9, 2018 in Washington, DC. In addition to seeking bipartisan solutions to immigration reform, Trump advocated for the reintroduction of earmarks as a way to break the legislative stalemate in Congress.

President Donald Trump stated Congress needs to pass a pandemic stimulus bill that involves $2,000 direct payments to Americans and not the $600 ones.

Trump Threatens Surprise COVID-19 Bill Veto

According to President Trump on Tuesday, "Congress found plenty of money for foreign countries, lobbyists, and special interests. While sending the bare minimum to the American people who need it. It wasn't their fault; it was China's fault," reported The Epoch Times.

The direly needed and approved novel coronavirus relief package is in a tricky situation as a result of an unprecedented veto threat from Trump who, while making frantic efforts overturning the presidential election, sat out the negotiations.

According to Trump's main complaint in a video he posted on Twitter, Congress must send United States citizens $2,000 checks, instead of the "ridiculously low" amount of $600 that Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin wanted.

Nancy Pelosi has accepted Trump's appeal to bolster checks for Americans from $600 to $2,000 in the anticipated next round of COVID-19 stimulus relief. She told the president, "Let's do it!" reported Daily Mail.

The $900 billion relief package passed by Congress on Monday was a proposal widely found fault with on both sides of the political aisle as being inadequate.

Trump's threat comes amid a ravaging pandemic and steep economic uncertainty, with him demanding changes fellow Republicans have opposed.

Assailing the bipartisan $900 billion package in his video, he suggested that he may not sign it and that the bill would deliver inundated money to foreign countries but insufficient funding to Americans, reported MarketWatch.

He criticized the coronavirus relief deal passed, remarking the bill practically has no association with COVID-19, and appealed to lawmakers to increase the direct payments.

Also Read: Dr. Fauci, Other Health Officials Administered COVID-19 Vaccine in Live TV

According to Trump in his tweeted video, he is appealing to Congress to amend the bill and increase the "ridiculously low" $600 per individual to $2,000 or $4,000 for a couple, reported The Wall Street Journal.

Republicans and Democrats agreed on the COVID-19 stimulus package on Monday, which was deliberated through the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Aside from increasing direct payments for the majority of Americans from $600 to $2,000 for individuals, he also demanded $4,000 for couples.

Railing against a series of bill provisions, including for foreign aid, Trump addressed lawmakers to remove wasteful and unnecessary items from this legislation and to send him a favorable bill.

The direct payments are a maximum of $600 per individual and $600 per child, as indicated in the bill.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicated there is support for the measure in the Democratic-controlled House for Trump's initiative.

The last $900 billion stimulus deal passed both chambers of Congress on Monday with inundated support, with the House voting 359-to-53 and the Senate voting 92-to-6 to pass it.

Trump did not denote to veto the COVID-19 relief bill, and there may be adequate support for legislation in Congress to overrule him if he does. But if Trump were to overturn the sprawling legislation, the aftermath would be severe. This involves no federal financial assistance to grappling Americans and small businesses, with no extra resources to aid the COVID-19 vaccine dissemination.