House Republicans blocked Democrats’ attempt to meet President Donald Trump’s demand to pay most Americans $2,000 to help weather the coronavirus pandemic.
Republicans objected to the bill House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer sought to pass by unanimous consent Thursday to replace the $600 payments in the latest pandemic relief legislation with the $2,000 payments.
Prince-Alex Iwu is an associate with the law firm Diaz, Reus & Targ. Prince-Alex's expertise includes international arbitration, corporate investigations, compliance and cross-border disputes. He advises clients in navigating complex regulatory frameworks, including sanctions and financial crime compliance.
Ishmael Green is a partner with the law firm Diaz, Reus & Targ. His expertise includes complex commercial litigation, class action defense, securities and fraud litigation, cryptocurrency law and regulatory compliance. Green advises U.S. and multinational corporations on digital asset disputes and has provided expert commentary on cryptocurrency regulations.
Michael Diaz Jr. is the global managing partner of law firm Diaz, Reus & Targ. Michael is a Florida bar board-certified international litigation and arbitration attorney and an ACAMS-certified anti-money-laundering specialist with 38 years of experience leading cross-border investigations, FCPA and OFAC matters, asset recovery and crypto-related disputes.
“House and Senate Democrats have repeatedly fought for bigger checks for the American people, which House and Senate Republicans have repeatedly rejected — first, during our negotiations when they said that they would not go above $600 and now, with this act of callousness on the Floor,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement Thursday.
Democrats will try again with a roll call vote on a new bill Dec. 28, when the House also plans a vote to override Trump’s veto on the National Defense Authorization Act. Since current government spending runs out that day — and funds for the rest of the fiscal year are included in the virus relief bill Trump criticized and hasn’t signed -- the House could also pass another stopgap measure to avert a partial government shutdown.
Republicans on Thursday tried to seek unanimous consent on a measure to examine taxpayer money spent on foreign aid, but Democrats blocked that move. In his complaint Tuesday about Congress’s combined virus aid and government spending bill, Trump criticized federal resources spent on international programs, even though that spending was allocated as part of the bipartisan appropriations process.