Democrats passed the HEROES Act back in May – a bill that would extend through next year the $600 unemployment bonuses, eviction protections, and other support for Americans struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite knowing that the CARES Act would expire on July 31st, Republicans in both houses of Congress refused to accept the Democrats’ bill – or put forth their own. Finally, they proposed the HEALS Act on July 27, but it was too late.
In the last days of July, Congress wasn’t able to hammer out all the differences before their planned August vacation. So is a second COVID-19 stimulus bill off the table? Not necessarily.
After the stalemate, President Trump took matters into his own hands, attempting to push through stimulus via a set of executive orders. But they have a host of problems.
First, they might be impossible to implement. He attempted to provide extended unemployment benefits, but they would cost cash-strapped states too much. Weeks later, Americans have yet to receive anything.
But that’s not all.
The Payroll tax cut he proposed is even more problematic. Even if it worked – it doesn’t, according to experts – it would only help people who still have jobs, not the unemployed. Even worse, the cut would defund Social Security and Medicare – the primary lifeline keeping our elders alive.
He also included an eviction protection order, but it only applies to about a third of renters and is “weak,” according to Forbes.
There’s still one other option, though, to get a real stimulus bill passed that will genuinely help the millions of Americans suffering under COVID-19.
Congress would need to compromise. Democrats claim they’re willing – they’ll cut their bill by $1 trillion if Republicans will increase theirs by the same amount, they say, coming to a $2 trillion compromise. But Republicans have so far refused.
The Republican-backed proposal includes a much lower unemployment bonus – $200 per week – and no money for “housing, food or state and local governments,” reports USA Today. Republicans are also refusing to sign off on any funding for the United States Postal Service (USPS).
Funding for USPS would help facilitate mail-in voting during the November election, because COVID-19 is still surging across the country – making in-person voting potentially dangerous. This Republican refusal has become a surprisingly large part of the debate over the stimulus.
Pelosi is calling House members back to Washington from their vacation to pass a bill that would address issues with the USPS – Democrats are dismayed that the Trump-appointed Postmaster General seems intent on preventing mail-in voting.
Trump has long argued against mail-in voting, despite the fact that he and his family use it. Conservatives have often railed against it, claiming fraud – but analysts suggest it’s about suppressing the Black vote.
If Congress doesn’t compromise fast, a wave of millions of evictions, and further economic fallout, could be in the near future – and voters may remember who was willing to compromise, and who wasn’t.