Sen. Warner: It's not 'progressive at all' to give stimulus checks to the employed, if it costs the jobless
As Congressional leaders try to hammer out a roughly $900 billion coronavirus relief bill, Sen. Mark Warner (D., Virg.) told Yahoo Finance he expects to see an agreement before the end of the week.
Lawmakers need to pass a funding bill by the end of the week to avoid a government shutdown, and the hope has been to add relief measures to that package. While details of the potential deal haven’t been released yet, lawmakers say it won’t include state and local aid or liability protections — the two sticking points that have plagued negotiators for most of 2020.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) said the bipartisan plan released earlier this week was the basis of the leadership’s negotiations.
“We got very frustrated — the bipartisan group — that we have been basically sitting for months, doing nothing,” said Warner. “I think we broke the logjam.”
‘I don't think that's progressive at all’
Unlike the bipartisan bill, the new proposal is expected to include a round of stimulus checks in the $600-$700 range, according to Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.).
Warner, who helped craft the bipartisan plan, told Yahoo Finance Live the bipartisan group was not opposed to direct payments, but unemployment benefits took priority.
“If in some imaginary world we could've added checks on top, without taking away the targeted relief to those most in need, I'd be all for that,” said Warner.
While he expects to support the latest deal, he would be disappointed if including stimulus checks meant less money for enhanced unemployment benefits.
“I don't think there's very much progressive about the idea that if we're going to try to give checks to people — who've had no economic harm — if you're taking it out of the hide of people that, frankly, are unemployed or you're taking it away from food banks, you're taking it away from mental health assistance, said Warner. “I don't think that's progressive at all.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), Sen. Josh Hawley (R., Mo.) and progressives in the House have threatened to hold up a coronavirus relief package if it does not contain stimulus checks. Sanders told reporters on Wednesday $600-$700 checks would be progress, but he’s still pushing for more.
"Right now, we're going to do our best to get to $1,200 but this is a good start,” said Sanders.
Hawley called the smaller direct payments “movement in the right direction,” but also pressed for $1,200 checks.
Even if Congress is able to come to an agreement before the end of the year, it won’t be the last stimulus fight. President-elect Joe Biden called the $900 billion proposal a “down payment” on Wednesday, and has been clear he expects Congress to do more when he takes office.
The battle over funding for state and local governments and liability protections will likely be front and center again in 2021, as lawmakers appear to put the issue for now.
“I think we need state and local government assistance. I think there's also a legitimate case to be made for appropriate liability protections for businesses that did the right thing. I'm disappointed we couldn't finally bridge that gap,” said Warner. “We're looking at the second-largest financial package in our country's entire history. So this is a solid product that really is focused on the next four months.”
“The best news is we’re not going to be Scrooge for Christmas,” he added.
Jessica Smith is a reporter for Yahoo Finance based in Washington, D.C. Follow her on Twitter at @JessicaASmith8.
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