After days of rejection and intransigence, and under pressure from all parties, the outgoing US President Donald Trump signed, on Sunday evening, December 27, 2020, a new stimulus plan for the economy worth 900 billion dollars, granting subsidies to millions of families and small businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic .
On the evening of Tuesday, December 22, 2020, Trump described the Congress’s economic recovery plan as “a disgrace,” and called for amendments to be made.
Trump also signed the Federal Agency Funding Act, which will prevent a new government shutdown, according to a White House statement.
Trump's signature came a day after US President-elect Joe Biden warned him of "dire consequences" if he continued to delay the signing of the economic stimulus plan, noting that about 10 million Americans would lose unemployment benefits.
And signing the aid package is very important, according to Biden, who stressed that his country needs to take more measures early in the new year to revive the economy and contain the epidemic, including meeting the urgent need for funding to distribute the vaccine and increase the ability to conduct tests.
It is noteworthy that two federal unemployment benefits programs approved in March 2020 as part of an initial relief plan to confront the Coronavirus have expired at midnight Saturday December 26, 2020, which led to cutting aid to about 12 million Americans, according to the Foundation Research Center. Century.
The $ 900 billion relief package approved by Congress overwhelmingly Monday December 21, 2020, after months of negotiations, will extend those aid, in addition to other benefits that are set to expire in the coming days.
But the day after the bill was approved, Trump had thwarted all hopes that resulted from the long-delayed efforts of lawmakers, rejecting the bill and signaling at first that he would not sign it.
Trump believed that the bill passed by Congress serves the owners of large companies and provides aid to foreign countries instead of helping citizens.
He called for raising the $ 600 amount stipulated in the bill to more than three times, stressing that the legislation includes a lot of extra spending on programs not related to the issue.
The law came after a grueling compromise
On the other hand, some Republicans urged Trump to change his point of view, noting that the bill was the result of a painstaking settlement.
Republican Senator Pat Tommy told Fox News Sunday, "I understand he wants people to remember him by calling for big checks, but the danger is that he will remain in memory because of the chaos, misery and erratic behavior."
In theory, Congress could have overridden Trump's veto.
On Thursday, Democrats in Congress sought to approve a measure to increase direct payments in line with what Trump wanted, but Republicans blocked its passage.
This was largely seen as a theatrical move intended to expose the rift between Republicans and the outgoing president with little hope of adopting the measure.