Pelosi, Schumer Bash Trump For Unilateral Executive Actions On COVID-19 Relief

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th August, 2020) US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have slammed President Donald Trump for bypassing the Congress with executive orders to extend COVID-19 relief and urged Republicans to return to the negotiating table.

On Saturday, Trump signed four actions on COVID-19 relief to provide a payroll tax holiday to Americans earning less than $100,000 per year, grant $400 per week in expanded benefits to those unemployed, protect people from eviction and extend relief to student loan borrowers. His move came as rescue package talks in Congress stalled and the $600 weekly unemployment benefit expired last week.

In a joint statement, Pelosi and Schumer have described the announcements as "unworkable, weak and narrow." They claimed that Trump "still does not comprehend the seriousness or the urgency of the health and economic crises facing working families." They, in particular, accused him of "cutting families' unemployment benefits and pushing states further into budget crises.

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"Democrats repeat our call to Republicans to return to the table, meet us halfway and work together to deliver immediate relief to the American people. Lives are being lost, and time is of the essence," the statement, published on Saturday, added.

While making his policy announcements, Trump, in turn, said that the Democrats were "actively blocking" support for K-12 schools, additional funding for businesses, hospitals, testing and vaccines, a well as direct payments to families. He personally accused Pelosi and Schumer of holding the "vital assistance" hostage.

According to the president, the Democrat bill is full of stipulations that have nothing to do with coronavirus, including the mass release of inmates, even serious felons. He said that the key thing that the Democrats want is "bailout money for states run by Democrat governors and mayors."