Senate leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday that it was a “mistake” for Democrats to work with Senator Susan Collins during the early Obama years and that President Biden did not think Republicans were “serious.” in the coronavirus relief negotiations.
The remarks of Schumer, DN.Y., made during an interview on CNN, were reinforced by White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, who again tweeted a report on the interview by NBC’s Sahil Kapur.
“No, you know, we made a big mistake in 2009 and 2010,” Schumer told Anderson Cooper. “Susan Collins was part of the mistake. We reduced the stimulus dramatically and we stayed in a recession for five years.”
Collins, R-Maine, was the leader of a White House GOP delegation aimed at negotiating with Biden on what a dual coronavirus plan might look like. Their opening bid would have cost $ 618 billion, significantly less than the $ 1.9 billion plan initially proposed by President Biden.
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The White House responded to the Republicans ‘proposal with a statement that Biden would not delay work on this urgent crisis or approach a package that could not meet the moment’ for the sake of duality.
A $ 1.9 billion bill in line with Biden’s initial proposal is expected to be passed by Congress and signed by the president in the coming days. Democrats enforce the bill through a process called budget reconciliation, which enables them to bypass a filibuster in the Senate and pass the bill without Republican votes.
“What the Republicans offered was so far away from what was needed, so far away from what Biden was proposing that he thought they did not want to be serious about really wanting to negotiate,” Schumer said Tuesday.
Schumer’s statement – and the fact that it was retweeted by Klain, who holds the most critical staff position in the White House – raises questions about the sincerity of Biden’s calls for unity and the government’s desire to deal with Republicans. members of Congress.
“I thought leader Schumer’s remarks were bizarre. He voted for the same package as me,” Collins said when asked about Schumer’s interview on Wednesday. “I think it unfortunately reflects his inability to accept the fact that the people of Maine, despite pouring in $ 100 million to defeat me, said no. And re-elected me to a historic term.”
Collins also described her initial conversation about the $ 618 coronavirus bill as ‘productive’, but said Schumer ‘showed that he had absolutely no interest in trying to negotiate a dual agreement, despite our very sincere attempt at an initial package’. suggest what can serve as the basis for negotiation. “
Despite the fact that the Democrats did not get any Republicans on board with their coronavirus stimulus, members of the government, including Klain, themselves said the stimulus is twofold because Americans from both parties support the bill.
“It’s twofold. Again,” Klain tweeted Tuesday as he shared Pew Research Center levels that show that 70% of Americans support Biden’s stimulus plan.
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Also striking is the fact that the Great Recession technically only lasted until mid-2009 and that US GDP recovered to its level before the recession by 2011, contrary to Schumer’s remark. This steady recovery is often put forward by Democrats who have criticized former President Donald Trump for taking credit for the success of his predecessor, former President Barack Obama.
“I did not realize that the Democrats thought the Obama presidency was such a failure,” Collins spokeswoman Annie Clark said of Schumer’s remark.
But the U.S. unemployment rate took about five years to recover to about its level before the recession under Obama.
The unemployment rate before the recession was as low as 4.4%, but it did not fall below 6% until 2014 and did not fall below 5% again until 2016. Republicans blamed the slow recovery on jobs for anti-growth policies by Obama, while Democrats said it was because the government did not spend enough money in 2009 and 2010.
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) speaks at a U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee to investigate covid-19 and focus on an update of the federal response in Washington, DC, on September 23, 2020. ( Photo by ALEX EDELMAN / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)
Biden also recently took credit for Collins’ vote on the Obama stimulus last month, pointing to his efforts as a positive testament to his ability to enter into transactions. Collins was one of three Republicans who voted for the stimulus bill and Obama personally called her to thank her for her vote, Fox News is told.
But Biden also made a similar point in the same breath as Schumer said on CNN on Tuesday.
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“I did everything in my power to make it happen, including three Republicans changing their votes and voting for it,” Biden said last month about the 2009 stimulus. “But it was not enough. It was not quite big enough. It stopped the crisis, but the recovery could have been faster and even bigger. Today we need an answer that addresses the challenge of this crisis, not one that falls. short. “
Biden added: “What Republicans have suggested is to do nothing or not do enough. Suddenly, many of them have rediscovered fiscal restraint and concerns about deficits. But do not spoil yourself – this approach comes at a cost: more pain for more people, longer than it should be. ‘
The White House did not respond to a Wednesday morning inquiry into whether Biden agreed with Schumer that the collaboration with Collins in 2009 was a mistake.
Collins said she opposes the Democrat and Biden-backed coronavirus bill because it contains many provisions unrelated to the virus, and the Democrats were unwilling to involve Republicans in negotiations.
“Democrats preferred to use a biased bill using a biased process. The only thing that was ambiguous about this package was the opposition in the House,” she said. “Under the guise of enlightening COVID-19, Democratic leaders proposed a $ 1.9 billion package that was full of provisions that had nothing to do with fighting the coronavirus, from a public health perspective. or economic perspective. “
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Klain again shared a report boasting about the fact that Biden’s coronavirus bill was ‘stamped’ by Congress without Republican procurement.
“Obama spent much of his first year in office seeking a dual purchase for the ACA,” New York Magazine author Eric Levitz said in a tweet, quoting the article he wrote Tuesday. published. “Biden has just slammed most of its health care plan over a 1.9 billion relief bill and passed it through Congress before the government of its two-month anniversary.”
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The president took office with promises of ‘unity’ and a vow to lower ‘political temperature’. He expressed a desire to work with Republicans on high-profile legislation. Such a bipartisan has yet to realize.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Tuesday refused to take advantage of the possibility of using the reconciliation process to bypass Republicans on an infrastructure package off the table.
The most important two-party area in Washington since Biden was inaugurated, the Senate has for the president’s nominees for the cabinet. The Senate is expected to confirm Wednesday afternoon that Judge Merrick Garland will appoint the next attorney general and rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, will be with significant majorities from the two parties.
FOX Business ‘Blake Burman and Fox News’ Kelly Phares contributed to this report.