Why a vote on $2,000 stimulus checks is an absolute nightmare for Senate Republicans
On Sunday night, as part of his face-saving efforts following his utter capitulation to Congress in signing the Covid-19 stimulus relief legislation, President Donald Trump insisted that "the Senate will start the process for a vote that increases checks to $2,000, repeals Section 230, and starts an investigation into voter fraud."
The last two claims there from Trump are utter bunk; there appears to be little will among Senate Republicans to rethink the way social media companies regulate content or to spend months digging for voter fraud claims that are, well, nonexistent.
It's Trump's first point -- that the Senate "will start the process for a vote that increases [stimulus] checks to $2,000" -- that is by far the most realistic and politically problematic suggestion for Republicans.
Why? Because it puts them in a very small box: Either vote to massively increase the national debt -- by giving $1,400 more to every qualifying individual in the country -- or vote against what is much-needed money for people who have been devastated by the economic effects of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
So, either violate a bedrock principle of conservatism (the government is spending us into unmanageable debt!) or be attacked as heartless by Democrats. It's a lose-lose. Bigly. Especially if you are Sens. Kelly Loeffler or David Perdue, both locked in tight runoff races on January 5. Both incumbent Republicans need base conservatives with them to win, so a vote for more government spending isn't a good one.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/why-a-vote-on-dollar2000-stimulus-checks-is-an-absolute-nightmare-for-senate-republicans/ar-BB1cieoA?li=BBnb7Kz
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