Trump Threatens Veto of Defense Bill – By The Fiscal Times Staff (The Fiscal Times) / Nov 23 2020
Plus – Biden backs Pelosi on massive relief bill
Biden Backs Pelosi on Massive Stimulus Bill as Former Treasury Heads Call for More Aid
Joe Biden is backing House Democrats in their effort to negotiate a multi-trillion-dollar coronavirus relief bill, according to a Biden representative Monday. “The President-elect fully supports the Speaker and Leader in their negotiations,” transition spokesperson Andrew Bates said.
The statement from the Biden team came in response to a report Sunday in The New York Times that Biden’s economic advisers – worried about both a double-dip recession driven by the recent surge in coronavirus infections and the difficulty House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) faces in reaching an agreement on a roughly $2 trillion relief bill with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) – were pushing for a smaller package.
“Many of the president-elect’s advisers have become convinced that deteriorating economic conditions from the renewed surge in Covid-19 infections and the looming threat of millions of Americans losing jobless benefits in December amid a wave of evictions and foreclosures require more urgent action before year’s end,” the Times said. “That could mean moving at least part of the way toward Mr. McConnell’s offer of a $500 billion package.”
The Biden team’s pushback makes it clear that the incoming administration is sticking with its congressional allies, at least for now. But it wouldn’t be a surprise to hear more about accepting some kind of compromise deal in the coming weeks, especially if the economic data take a turn for the worse, as many Biden advisers fear.
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