President Biden urged the Senate on Saturday to quickly pass his $ 1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill, stating that “we have no time to waste.”
“If we act now we can finally get ahead of the virus,” he said in a White House forum comment that lasted less than two minutes.
Without Republicans’ support, House Democrats approved the American Rescue Planning Act early Saturday morning by a vote of 219 to 212. Two dems were blamed for opposing the massive spending measure.
“The people of this country have suffered greatly,” said Biden. “We need to get relief from that misery.”
The bill includes $ 1,400 incentive checks for adults earning up to $ 75,000 per year, with smaller checks for those on higher incomes. Parents will receive an additional $ 1400 for each dependent child.
But Republicans have complained that the bill is loaded with pork – and full of money for programs that have nothing to do with the 500,000-life epidemic.
“Less than 9 percent of the bill will be used for public health,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-California) said on Friday.
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