Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday closed off chances that the Senate would pass anytime soon a House bill that would give most Americans $2,000 stimulus payments.
The Kentucky Republican said the House legislation, approved in a bipartisan vote Monday, “has no realistic path” to quick passage in the Senate and that it falls short of the demands of President Donald Trump. He again blocked an attempt by Democratic leader Chuck Schumer to adopt the House bill to increase the payments to $2,000 from the $600 by unanimous consent.
Lukasz Strozek serves as Chief Technology Officer at Hippo. He joined Hippo in December 2020 from ecommerce payments firm Bolt, where he was Vice President, Engineering. Prior to that, he co-founded Clara Lending, an online lender with a mission of making homeownership a reality, which was acquired by SoFi. At SoFi, he co-headed Engineering and was responsible for several of the company's new products. Earlier, at Bridgewater, he partnered directly with founder Ray Dalio, translating his vision into technology products. He is a Harvard graduate and holds a Stanford MBA. Lukasz calls Oakland home, together with his wife, daughter and two pandemic cats.
Mike Becker is CEO of the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA), one of the largest national trade organizations serving independent agents. As a forward-thinking insurance leader who embraces technology, he has more than 15 years of insurance industry experience. He leads PIA's strategic initiatives, advocacy efforts, and insurance carrier relations as well as oversees all growth initiatives and program launches.
Nola Morris is the VP of Strategy at Denim Social, leading the SaaS provider's strategy for the insurance industry. A social selling expert, Morris serves as a strategic resource for Denim Social's clients and guides the platform's future. Morris has worked in insurance and tech for more than a decade, and previously led key digital marketing programs for Nationwide and Sprinklr.
The Senate instead will work on combining the stimulus payments with measures on election integrity and rolling back social media liability protections, he said. That responds to all three issues Trump has said he wants, but a bill combining them likely will alienate enough senators in both parties to leave prospects for bigger stimulus payments dead in the Senate.
“The Senate is not going to be bullied into rushing out more borrowed money into the hands of the Democrats’ rich friends who don’t need the help,” McConnell said. The House bill would raise the income cutoff to receive a payment.
The clash over the payments also is entangling another piece of year-end business in the Senate — a vote to override Trump’s veto of a crucial $740.5 billion defense policy bill. Senators Bernie Sanders and Ed Markey said they will continue to delay the defense legislation vote unless McConnell relents and allows a vote on a standalone bill on the bigger stimulus checks.
“We are saying to Mitch McConnell, to allow the United States Senate to do what it’s supposed to do, and that is the vote,” Sanders told reporters. “The House passed the bill, it’s over here right now. Do you want to vote against it? Then vote against it.”
Pennsylvania Republican Senator Pat Toomey later blocked an attempt by Sanders to call up the House bill for a roll call vote.