Washington – A group of ten Republican senators will meet with President Biden on Monday to propose an alternative relief package COVID-19, while the White House and congressional Democrats prepare to continue with Mr. Biden’s $ 1.9 trillion plan with or without GOP support.
The GOP group, led by Senator Susan Collins, told Mr. Biden wrote to request a meeting, and the White House quickly issued an invitation to meet with the president for a “full exchange of ideas.”
“We appreciate the President’s prompt response to our letter, and we are delighted to accept his invitation to the White House tomorrow afternoon to discuss the way forward for the sixth dual assistance package COVID-19,” the group said in a statement.
Republican senators’ offer amounts to about $ 618 billion, or less than a third of the size of the package Biden wants, according to a summary of the proposal released Monday. The plan calls for $ 160 billion for the development, distribution and testing of vaccines, $ 132 billion for extended unemployment benefits and $ 220 billion for a new round of direct payments.
Under the proposal, individuals earning less than $ 40,000 would receive direct payments of $ 1,000, and couples filing jointly would receive $ 2,000. An additional $ 500 will also be paid for each dependent child or adult. Individuals earning more than $ 50,000 and couples earning more than $ 100,000 are not eligible for payments.
In addition, the extended unemployment benefits amount to $ 300 per week in addition to government benefits, and will last until June. Mr. Biden has suggested that the benefits be extended until September.
“In the spirit of duality and unity, we have developed a COVID-19 assistance framework that builds on previous COVID assistance laws, all of which have been implemented with dual support,” the group wrote in its letter to Mr. Biden. “Our proposal reflects many of your stated priorities, and with your support we believe that this plan can be quickly approved by Congress with dual support. We request the opportunity to meet with you to discuss our proposal in more detail and how we can work together to meet the needs of the American people during this ongoing pandemic. ‘
The group of Republican senators hopes their package could be a starting point for a bill that provides dual support as Congress Democrats prepare to proceed with a process known as budget reconciliation to the plan of mr. Pray to pass the Senate by a simple majority.
This past week, Republicans in the Senate did just that. criticized the price of $ 1.9 billion on mr. Biden’s proposal and specifically the formula for distributing another round of direct cash payments. Ohio Senator Rob Portman, one of the signatories to the letter, said in an interview with CNN on Sunday that direct payments would be more focused on their proposal.
The senators who signed the letter include Collins, Portman, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah, Shelley Moore Capito of Western Virginia, Todd Young of Indiana, Jerry Moran of Kansas, Mike Rounds of South Dakota and Thom Tillis of North Carolina.
Eight of the signatories were part of a dual group of senators met spoke last week with Brian Deese, the best economic adviser to Mr. Biden, on the government’s emergency relief package. Deese said Sunday that the White House intends to review the latest letter, signaling that the president is willing to meet with the group but does not want to compromise on the key provisions of his emergency relief package.
“The president has repeatedly said he is open to ideas wherever they may be, that we can improve the approach to tackling this crisis,” Deese said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” ‘What he’s uncompromising about is the need to work quickly with a comprehensive approach here … So we need to act comprehensively, and we need to act quickly, but we continue to have conversations as we move forward. “
Cedric Richmond, a senior adviser to the president, echoed Deese’s comments, tells CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that Mr. Pray “willing to meet with anyone” to continue the process.
“The president said in his inaugural address that he wants to work with both sides to help the American people,” Richmond said Sunday. “What we know about President Biden is that it is never about him, but always about the people. So yes, he is very willing to meet with anyone to advance the agenda.”