As jobless claims rise, House Republican leaders are slamming Speaker Nancy Pelosi for not bringing a bill to the House floor months ago that would have re-opened billions of dollars in unused federal funds to aid struggling small businesses during the pandemic.
House Minority Whip Steve Scalise predicted the bill would get 400 votes if Pelosi allowed a vote.
The number of workers who filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week increased to 853,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. This represented an increase of more than 100,000 compared to the previous week.
House Small Business Committee Ranking Member Steve Chabot, an Ohio Republican, proposed a bill in September that would allow small businesses to apply for $138 billion in unused Paycheck Protection Program funding. Lawmakers said the bill required no new funds to be spent but the legislation hasn’t been passed in the Democratic-led House. California Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in the House, accused Pelosi of putting politics before people.
“More than 30 times the Republicans have brought to the floor the ability to vote to bring assistance. More than 40 times the Democrats have said no,” he said on Thursday. “Today we hope that you will say yes. How many more businesses have to shutter? How many more dreams have to be shattered? How many more people have to be laid off before Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats will act?”
Pelosi said on Thursday that she is now open to passing a relief package smaller than the multi-trillion bills she has moved through the chamber since May, attributing the change to Joe Biden winning the election.
“Speaker Nancy Pelosi finally admitted to what every member standing behind me already knew; she sabotaged the COVID relief deal simply because of an election,” McCarthy said. “She put politics before people. It was more important for her to hurt President Trump politically than to help the American people.”
McCarthy said economic “devastation” has occurred while the unused PPP funds sat there. He called on Democrats to “stop playing politics” and pass relief for small businesses…
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