FOLLOW US

President Donald Trump signed the coronavirus relief bill but he made substantial changes to it before sending it back to Congress.

“Good news on Covid Relief Bill. Information to follow!” he said just before 6:30 PM EST on Twitter on Sunday.

He also said in another tweet, “See you in Washington, DC, on January 6th. Don't miss it. Information to follow!”

In a statement announcing that he had signed the bill that passed the House and Senate last week, the president demanded that Congress continue to revise the bill and cut the excess spending.

"I will sign the Omnibus and Covid package with a strong message that makes clear to Congress that wasteful items need to be removed. I will send back to Congress a redlined version, item by item, accompanied by the formal rescission request to Congress insisting that those funds be removed from the bill," he said.

The move was applauded by Senate Majority Leader and Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell in a statement on Twitter.

“I applaud the President’s decision to get billions of dollars of crucial COVID-19 relief out the door and into the hands of American families. I am glad the American people will receive this much-needed assistance as our nation continues battling this pandemic,” he said.

https://twitter.com/senatemajldr/status/1343365527851429888?s=20

House Speaker and California Rep. Nancy Pelosi issued her own statement applauding the president for signing the bill and calling on him to pressure Republicans to pass a $2,000 per person stimulus.

“The signing of the bipartisan, bicameral coronavirus relief legislation is welcome news for the fourteen million Americans who just lost the lifeline of unemployment benefits on Christmas Weekend, and for the millions more struggling to stay afloat during this historic pandemic and economic crisis,” the Speaker said.

“This relief legislation is a down payment on what is needed to crush the virus, put money in the pockets of the American people, and honor our heroes – our health care workers, first responders, transit and sanitation workers, and teachers.  We need to ensure robust support for state and local government to distribute and administer a vaccine, keep workers employed, and prevent devastating service cuts – and we must do so as soon as possible.

“Now, the President must immediately call on Congressional Republicans to end their obstruction and to join him and Democrats in support of our stand-alone legislation to increase direct payment checks to $2,000, which will be brought to the Floor tomorrow.  Every Republican vote against this bill is a vote to deny the financial hardship that families face and to deny the American people the relief they need,” she said.

----------------------------------------

Have a story you want USA Herald to cover? Submit a tip here and if we think it's newsworthy, we'll follow up on it.

Want to contribute a story? We also accept article submissions – check out our writer's guidelines here.