Mitch McConnell Reportedly Preparing ‘Poison Pill’ To Thwart Democrats And Doom $2,000 Stimulus Checks
Sen. Mitch McConnell is reportedly preparing a “poison pill” bill intended to put Democrats in a difficult spot and doom the chance of passing $2,000 stimulus checks for Americans.
As Talking Points Memo reported, the Senate majority leader is trying to sink the proposal that would more than double the $600 direct payments agreed to in the latest coronavirus stimulus deal, all while protecting two Georgia Senate runoff candidates. He may be hatching a plan to do both, with the report noting that he was preparing to tie in a less popular proposal from Trump that would make social media outlets liable for content published on their platforms.
The president has repeatedly called for the repeal of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, claiming that these platforms have treated him unfairly and are biased against conservatives. McConnell would also follow up on Trump’s claims of election fraud in the bill as well, the report added.
By tying a vote on this measure in with increasing the size of the checks to $2,000, McConnell is reportedly trying to force his Democratic colleagues into a difficult vote. This would allow the two Georgia members to vote for what would likely be a doomed bill, giving them cover with voters ahead of next month’s runoff races.
“Democrats largely don’t support repealing Section 230, nor are they likely to support the so-called ‘2020 Bipartisan Advisory Committee’ that McConnell’s package would establish.” the outlet reported. “According to a text of the McConnell package published by The Washington Post, the committee would study ‘the scope of any improper and fraudulent votes that were cast in the election,’ among other things.”
McConnell has been under pressure ever since Trump’s surprise announcement last week that the $600 direct payments were inadequate and should be increased. Top Democrats immediately backed the demand, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi forcing a unanimous consent vote that was thwarted by Republicans. A later proposal to increase the amount gained bipartisan support, forcing McConnell to either break from the president’s demand or go back on his previous stance against the direct payments.
As The Inquisitr reported, many members of the Democratic caucus had been taking aim at McConnell in the past weeks and months, saying that he was standing in the way of larger amounts. In early December, Sen. Bernie Sanders called out McConnell, claiming such actions were unacceptable.
“There’s a lot of pain out there. The American people are looking to us for help and Democrats [should] stand up for working families of this country,” he said.
