White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Sunday that President Joe Biden was still prepared to lower the revenue threshold for the $ 1,400 stimulus checks in his $ 1.9 billion relief package. She also indicated that direct payments could be delayed by weeks, as Democrats determine the best way forward for the $ 15 minimum wage.
Biden is willing to direct the checks further to ensure they hit the Americans who need it most, Psaki said. Fox News Sundayand added that the president would not negotiate the size of the direct payments.
The House of Representatives passed the extensive relief legislation Friday night and passed it to the Senate, where Republicans are expected to propose several amendments to the bill. Any successful amendments will then be returned to the House for a final vote.
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Senator Susan Collins said Tuesday that she was in talks with Democrats about lowering the revenue threshold for direct payments as an amendment. Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin on Sunday confirmed the ongoing amendment talks, saying “this is one of the topics that the dual group of senators has raised from the beginning,” according to Hill.
Under the current account, individuals earning less than $ 75,000 a year would receive $ 1,400 and married couples earning less than $ 150,000 would earn $ 2,800. Those earning above the threshold will receive fewer payments and individuals earning more than $ 100,000 will be phased out completely. The eligibility requirements correspond to the first two rounds of checks sent under former President Donald Trump.
Earlier this month, Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicated that Democrats hope the bill will pass Congress in late February. Senate Democrats paved the way to use the budget process called Reconciliation to push through the package without GOP support, but it would require every Democrat in the upper chamber to vote for the measure, as all 50 Republican senators are expected to be to vote against it.
Moderate Democratic Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Cinema of Arizona have already said they are against raising the minimum wage to $ 15.
This week, Senate MP Elizabeth MacDonough, an impartial interpreter of chamber rules, ruled that the minimum wage of $ 15 did not meet the requirements of reconciliation. Following her decision, Democrats over the weekend explored other ways to pass the pay rise.
On Fox News Sunday, Confirmed Psaki Biden’s commitment to the $ 15 minimum wage and insisted he would find a way forward, while also warning that it could take ‘days or even a few weeks’.
“The president supports exactly what Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is doing, it’s raising the minimum wage for the American people trying to make ends meet. And he thinks it’s long overdue,” she added.
Progressive House Democrats have warned they could abstain on legislation if the upper house removes the pay rise. “I do not think we can go back to voters and say, ‘Look, I know Republicans, Democrats, Independents support it; we promised it, but because of an unelected parliamentarian who gave us a decision, we were able to do it. do not do, ” Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who chairs the Progressive Caucus of Congress, told reporters Friday.
Newsweek issued to the White House for comment.