Pelosi Puts Pressure On Trump To Pass The Stimulus Check Round 2

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Julia Delong
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 21: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) speaks to the media during her weekly press conference at the U.S. Capitol on November 21, 2019 in Washington, DC. Pelosi spoke about her legislative plans through the new year and the lack of progress she feels the Senate is making on passing legislation the House has already passed. She then took questions. (Photo by Alex Edelman/Getty Images)

With the big Election Day approaching in 16 days, tensions are on rise as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi places a deadline on President Trump to get the Stimulus Check Round 2 in place by Tuesday, October 20.

Pelosi And The Trump Administration Have Only 48 Hours To Reach An Agreement On The Stimulus Check Round 2

When asked by the Chief Anchor of ABC’s “This Week”, George Stephanopoulos, Pelosi stressed that its success “depends on the administration”. She reiterates that they have 48 hours to finalize the deal if they want it before November 3. If the House Moderates cannot agree on the draft, she fears negotiations might draw till the end of November.

Pelosi said that she is still hopeful about the stimulus check round 2 despite there being no official agreement between her and White House yet. 

Stimulus Check Round 2
Stimulus Check Round 2

Negotiations have been ongoing between Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for months. While Mnuchin moved closer to the $2.2 trillion bill proposed by the House, Trump stated in one of his interviews that he wanted to pass a bigger stimulus check round 2.  

Pelosi however is adamant about her stand and notes that the legislation’s price tag is not related to the standstill between her and White House. On “This Week” she stated that she wants further details regarding the national and state strategies of dealing with the novel coronavirus. Additionally, she wants a guarantee that she will get guidance from the CDC. 

Mitch McConnell, Majority Senate Leader is however against bringing the compromise package of $1.8 trillion to the Senate floor and was instead planning on calling a vote for a $500 billion “skinny bill” instead.

Millions Unemployed; No Progress On Second Stimulus Bill

The stimulus checks round 2 is still far away. According to a research conducted by Columbia University, an estimated 8 million Americans have fallen into poverty since May. Millions of unemployment claims have been filed. To add to this, US faces the 30th straight week of the highest unemployment claims in history, owing to the pandemic. 

Mitch McConnell up till now has been hesitant to accept any offer proposed by Democrats. However, his proposed skinny bill also has little chance to be passed by the House, going by precedents. On Saturday, the Senator reported that if the House Speaker reached an agreement with both the parties and the administration, the office of the Senate will consider the deal.

Moreover, the President has suggested that if the House reaches a consensus, the Senate GOP will agree as well. This comes after House Republicans start to distance themselves from Trump prior to the November presidential elections. This gives hope that the final deal on the stimulus check round 2 might be reached before November 3.

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