House passes COVID-19 relief bill along party lines, as Republicans 'unify' against helping America
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At 2 AM ET Saturday, the House passed the COVID-19 relief package along a 219 to 212 party line vote. The bill includes a $1,400 direct payment to individuals earning less than $75,000 or for couples earning below $150,000. It extendHouse passes COVID-19 relief bill along party lines, as Republicans 'unify' against helping America
At 2 AM ET Saturday, the House passed the COVID-19 relief package along a 219 to 212 party line vote. The bill includes a $1,400 direct payment to individuals earning less than $75,000 or for couples earning below $150,000. It extends federal unemployment benefits through August. It provides an additional $50 billion to speed the delivery of vaccines as well as create a national strategy for testing and case tracing. Another $200 billion goes to schools to assist in returning students to the classroom safely. It also includes $350 billion for state, tribal, and local governments, which have seen a huge revenue drop over the last year, at the same time there was an increased need for government assistance. And the bill preserves a measure that increases federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. The reason for the vote taking place at such a late (or early) hour was simple enough—Republicans did everything they could to delay the vote, including calling dozens of witnesses to slow a day that began considering the bill at 9:30 AM. The precise reason that Republicans began making objections and calling a large number of witnesses was simple enough—they wanted to push the vote past primetime, both so no one would see them voting against a bill that will send most Americans a much-needed check, and they wanted to unpack the same “passed in the dark of night” language that they’ve deployed so often in past. Because Republicans have set opposition to the COVID-19 relief plan as their “unifying” issue. Read more