President Donald Trump on Saturday signed executive actions, one of which would provide $ 400 a week in federal-enhanced unemployment benefits after Democrats and the White House failed to reach an agreement this week on a bill for coronavirus-boosting legislation.
“I’m taking action to provide an extra $ 400 per week and extended benefits, $ 400. That’s generous, but we want to take care of our people,” Trump said at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Trump signed one executive order and three memoranda, one of which enacts a payroll tax cut for Americans earning less than $ 100,000 a year. He also proposed extending an eviction moratorium and extending student loan payments and forgiving their interest.
Trump said the federal government will pay $ 300, leaving it to the states to pay the remaining $ 100. He did not write where the federal funds would come from.
When asked by a reporter why $ 400 instead of the previous $ 600, Trump responded: “This is the money they need, this is the money they want, this gives them a tremendous incentive to work back.”
Trump went on to say, “there was a problem with the 600 number because it was really a disincentive.”
Trump also took the opportunity to criticize the Democrats, saying, ‘We do that without the Democrats. We could have done it easily with them, but they want all these extra things that have nothing to do with helping people. “
Democrats are likely to challenge the executive actions in court. Trump first outlined the executive orders at an almost-summoned news conference on Friday at his golf club in New Jersey, where he said he was not worried about the legality of the actions he promised.
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