A promise made earlier this year that the American people will receive their $2,000 right away if Democrats will be winning the Senate is still currently in question as the United States President Joe Biden ignored a question regarding the stimulus checks' timing.
According to Fox News, their White House correspondent asked the U.S. President regarding the promise of stimulus checks during the conclusion of an event where Biden made remarks commemorating 50 million vaccine doses administered in the U.S. in 37 days.
He can be heard in the background in a video, asking the President what happened to his promise from seven weeks ago that if Democrats flipped the Senate, the checks were going out the door.
Biden returned to his podium as he retrieved his mask, which he appeared to have forgotten to put back on, but he did not answer any questions from the media.
During his campaign in Atlanta in January, Biden told the voters that the $2,000 stimulus checks would be imminent if the Democrat Senatorial candidates will win their runoff races.
Biden told the crowd that the election of the Democratic candidates would put an end to the block in Washington on that $2,000 stimulus check. He also added that the money would go out the door immediately to help Americans who are in trouble financially, Breaking 911 posted on its Twitter account.
Both Democrats won their runoff races, which effectively gave the party a majority in the Senate, considering that Vice President Kamala Harris will cast the tie-breaking vote.
Moreover, Democrats are currently working on a $1.9 trillion relief package, including a round of $1,400 direct payments to American households. A vote in the House could take place within the next few days.
The relief package does not have bipartisan support, which means it could move along in a fast-track process called budget reconciliation, wherein Democrats can pass certain spending measures without any approval from the Republicans.
The said legislation is intended for American households and includes aid to state and local governments, a fund for distributing vaccines, and the expansion of the unemployment benefits.
Also, lawmakers hope to pass the said relief package in the middle of March, which is also the expiration period of the federal unemployment insurance benefits.
The $15 minimum wage
A Senate official ruled on Thursday that the Democrats cannot include the $15 minimum wage per hour in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package, which derailed a party priority and a raise for millions of Americans, CNBC reported.
The nonpartisan Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough determined that lawmakers cannot include the expected policy under budget reconciliation. Along with her staff, MacDonough shared that they have heard arguments from both Republicans and Democrats regarding whether the proposal met strict standards for deficit effects that are needed to include it in the process. Reconciliation allows the Senate to pass a bill with simple authority, and in this case, no Republicans are wary of another rescue package.
