[Hot Air] Yesterday a couple of things happened with regard to the COVID relief bill that Democrats are hoping to pass. First, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Schumer put in place a bill that would allow them to pass the relief bill using reconciliation rules which only require 51 votes for passage. So, at least in theory, they would be able to pass the $1.9 trillion package without any GOP input or support. Pelosi said last week, "I hope we don’t need it. But if we need it, we will have it."
Then yesterday afternoon, President Biden met with 10 GOP Senators at the White House to discuss the possibility of a bipartisan agreement. The GOP is pushing for a much smaller bill in the range of $600 billion, noting that another $1 trillion COVID bill passed just a few weeks ago. No agreement was reached at the White House meeting yesterday but Sen. Collins, who was leading the GOP group, called it productive.
At the center of all this negotiating is Joe Manchin, the moderate Senate Democrat from West Virginia. Earlier today, Manchin voted with other Democrats to start the reconciliation ball rolling. He released a statement about the decision: |