Democrats are starting votes on a budget resolution, which would let them to pass President Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus bill on their own.
Congress will take its first votes Tuesday on the path toward passing Democrats‘ $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. Both the House and Senate plan to hold procedural votes on a budget resolution, which will unlock the reconciliation process. It will allow Democrats to approve rescue legislation without any Republican support. Democrats have contended they need to inject more money into the health and economic response as soon as possible. While a handful of Republicans hope to strike a smaller deal after meeting with President Joe Biden on Monday, they face a challenge in finding a middle ground between Democrats‘ plan and the GOP’s $618 billion offer. „Time is a luxury our country does not have,“ Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in announcing a vote to move forward with the budget process, which needs a simple majority to advance. He later added that Democrats „want this important work to be bipartisan“ and would welcome input from Republicans. Democrats, who gained a narrow Senate majority last month, have made another aid package their top priority since Biden took office. They have argued the $900 billion relief law passed in December, which came after months of federal inaction that allowed millions to fall into poverty and hunger, did not go far enough to address the scale of the health and economic crises.
