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With unemployment benefits due to expire for millions of Americans on Saturday, Donald Trump, who spent Christmas golfing in Florida, continued to block a $ 900 billion pandemic aid bill that would extend them.
The package, which Congress approved with bipartisan support on Monday after months of negotiations, would keep unemployment benefits through March and expand state benefits by $ 300 a week, in addition to extending a moratorium on evictions, providing federal loans to small businesses. and $ 600 direct. payments to many Americans.
But without Trump’s signature, the entire package, which will be the second-largest in US history, is stagnant and the US government now faces closure on Tuesday.
“I just want our great people $ 2,000, instead of the measly $ 600 that’s now on the bill. Also, stop the billions of dollars in ‘pork’, ”he tweeted Saturday morning.
It comes after he indicated Tuesday that he could veto the bill, calling it “shameful.”
Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said Trump’s motivation for increasing the payments to $ 2,000 is “to make it look good.”
“And maybe he sees this as the ultimate achievement in leaving office, where he is defeating Congress and his own party.” “He’s probably more resentful of members of his own party than Democrats … He is a wounded creature and he will make all other creatures suffer.”
With the endorsement of Senator Lindsey Graham, he said Republicans could still be convinced to vote for a bill that includes payments of $ 2,000, at which point Trump will “claim a great victory.”
He added: “I think now he actually believes his own lies about the elections. It was stolen because he has said it so many times ”.
But with the moratorium on evictions expiring on Dec. 31, he said any deal will have to be made this week.
“Hundreds of thousands of people who could lose their roof over their heads if they don’t get this eviction ban. There are so many pieces to this that are harmful. But of course Trump will blame everything on Congress and his supporters will then attack Congress, not realizing that it all comes down to Donald Trump. “
The 5,000-page bill was reportedly airlifted to Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach club, on Christmas Eve.
He was photographed playing golf on Christmas Day, his 309th visit to one of his presidency’s golf courses, despite vowing to be “working tirelessly” during the holiday period. On Saturday morning the bill was unsigned.
As the country continued to rebound from the growing pandemic and amid an explosion in Nashville, he also took time to enter into a debate on the first lady’s legacy, responding to a Breitbart News Christmas Day tweet that accused “Elitist snobs in the fashion press”. of not featuring Melania Trump on their covers for four years.
“The best of all time. Fake news!” tweeted.
About 24 hours after Congress passed the bill, Trump released a surprise video in which he criticized the bill, calling for direct payments to be increased to $ 2,000 per adult, despite his own party being opposed, and denounced spending on foreign aid and art venues.
“I made a lot of calls and had meetings at Trump International in Palm Beach, Florida,” he tweeted on Friday. “Why wouldn’t politicians want to give people $ 2,000, instead of just $ 600? It wasn’t his fault, it was China. Give money to our people! “
Following his defeat to President-elect Joe Biden in November, an election in which he has not yet relented, Trump appears even more willing to oppose his own party and its leadership.
After Republican Senator Mitch McConnell acknowledged Biden’s victory after the Electoral College vote, Trump sent an email to Republicans attacking the Senate Majority Leader.
A chart attached to the email reportedly showed a timeline of McConnell’s voting numbers and read: “Sadly, Mitch forgot. He was the first to get off the boat! “
On Christmas Day, Graham joined Trump on the golf course, who, having previously supported the aid package, subsequently appeared to change his mind.
“After spending some time with President @realDonaldTrump today, I am convinced that he is more determined than ever to increase stimulus payments to $ 2,000 per person and challenge Section 230’s big tech liability protection,” tweeted.
“Both are reasonable demands and I hope that Congress is listening. The biggest winner would be the American people. “
But with insufficient support for the $ 2,000 payments, an attempt was blocked by Republicans on Thursday, a solution to the aid bill unclear.
Earlier, Trump made his annual address to overseas service members public and attended evening mass on Christmas Eve in Bethesda-by-the-Sea, near Mar-a-Lago, but this year he has remained at his club or golf course, refraining from inviting the press to his speech and did not comment on the Nashville Christmas Day explosion, although he was reportedly informed about it.
