How Trump put stimulus relief at risk

To give the $ 2.3 trillion package time to reach the president’s desk, Congress on Monday approved a seven-day emergency bill that Mr Trump signed. This means that state funds will be used up by the end of the day on Monday, although a pro forma meeting is planned for both chambers and another short-term funding bill could be approved if Mr Trump doesn’t sign the funding bills for the full year.

What if he just doesn’t sign it?

Mr Trump didn’t say outright that he would veto the legislation if the changes he was asking for weren’t made, but he may not have to. The bill was passed with the support of well over two-thirds of the House and Senate, and it easily exceeded the threshold required to override a veto if it actually did so.

But one quirk in the calendar messed up the rules a bit. Legislation can become law 10 days after the bill is registered even without the signature of the President. However, since the timeframe coincides with the end of the ongoing Congress on January 3 and the convening of the 117th Congress, a “pocket veto” remains possible, said Josh Huder, senior fellow at the Government Affairs Institute at Georgetown University.

All laws die with a congress. Without Mr Trump’s signature in the next 10 days, the gigantic law would have to be reintroduced and voted on a second time, further delaying government funding and relieving the struggling Americans and companies.

What do Republicans think?

Republicans have long resisted spending more than $ 1 trillion on another aid package, but they need Mr Trump’s supporters to ensure they win two Senate runoff races in Georgia on Jan. 5. Losing both of them would cost them control of the Senate.

Georgia’s two Republican candidates, Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, have already proclaimed the passing of the coronavirus alleviation law a triumph, but they have also pledged allegiance to the president, who called the law “a shame”.

Still, after months of insisting that an aid package be as small as possible, some Republicans are likely to oppose an increase in direct payments. In the days leading up to a bipartisan deal, Senator Ron Johnson, Republican of Wisconsin, blocked attempts to raise payments to $ 1,200.