Senate passes Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill after voting overnight on amendments
Source: Washington Post
The Senate approved a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan on Saturday, as Democrats muscled through a marathon debate -- and overcame dissent from moderates within their own ranks -- to move one step closer to delivering President Biden his first legislative victory. Democrats voted to adopt the bill without any Republican support after a roughly 24-hour, around-the-clock session, though it will now fall to the House to consider the sweeping package once again before it can become law and any of the aid can be dispersed.
The Senate's passage of the measure marked an early win for Biden and his congressional Democratic allies, who had promised in the wake of the 2020 presidential election to authorize a robust package of new coronavirus aid - including another round of one-time checks for families - as one of their first acts.
But a prolonged standoff between centrists and progressives within the Democratic caucus quickly served to illustrate the precarious politics of the party's meager tie-breaking majority in the Senate, where even one holdout can upend Democrats' economic agenda in the early days of Biden's presidency.
The relief measure includes a new round of up-to $1,400 stimulus checks for millions of Americans, $350 billion for cash-strapped cities and states, $130 billion for schools, and other sizable sums for a wide array of programs including food assistance, rental relief and coronavirus vaccine distribution. The bill also authorizes an additional $300-per-week in unemployment payments until early September, trimming the amount that House Democrats initially had approved earlier in the month.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/03/06/biden-stimulus-covid-relief/
Full headline: Senate passes Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill after voting overnight on amendments, sends measure back to House


DippyDem
(660 posts)machoneman
(4,128 posts)BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)for final debate and a vote without any amendments.
They need to get it voted on, engrossed, and signed before the current extended UE expires on March 14th so the states don't have to go through the same nightmare they did back in December when their UE systems were forced to let the earlier extension expire and then start over again (forced to reprogram) because of the damn late signature by an ass who sat on the bill past the expiration date.
patricia92243
(12,968 posts)Qutzupalotl
(15,527 posts)$300 a week into September vs. $400 a week into August, iIRC. It'll pass the House quickly and Joe will sign it.
BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)including whatever the heck Schumer threw in as an "administrative/technical amendment" at the end right before the final vote (and Portman did the opposing remarks just whining about what was apparently in that amendment, that did pass).
BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)they either have to go into a Joint Conference (House and Senate) and come up with a single version and take that back to each chamber to pass - OR -
the House can just bring it to the floor "as is" and pass it.
hlthe2b
(111,588 posts)BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)sponsored by FUCK RAND PAUL and Manchin, none of their crap was passed.
hlthe2b
(111,588 posts)BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)I didn't stay up all night for the sausage-making but I was glad to see our side hold together on every one of those once Manchin (and a bunch of others, because it wasn't just him) got the UE issue straightened out.
srose58089
(218 posts)The final vote was 50 to 49 so no tie breaking vote needed
BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)That certainly gave VP Harris a break. I think except for a couple amendments that were "bipartisan" (and I saw at least one that had a 54 - 45 vote), the rest were all rejected 50 - 49.
djacq
(1,754 posts)$100
Mehdi Hasan is right.. the U.S. Senate is broken.
BumRushDaShow
(161,211 posts)when dark money poured into the coffers of a bunch of loons like Ted Cruz, Mike Lee and Josh Hawley (and forced many old-timers to start talking and acting crazy to keep their jobs ).