That would be the Senator McConnell’s (R-KY) in the wringer over the recently passed Covid-19 stimulus bill:
“I’m asking Congress to amend this bill and increase the ridiculously low $600 to $2000 or $4000 per couple,” Trump said in a video released on Twitter. “I’m also asking Congress to immediately get rid of the wasteful and unnecessary items in this legislation or to send me a suitable bill.”
The extraordinary message came after he largely left negotiations over the measure to lawmakers and his Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Trump did not explicitly threaten to veto the bill, but said he was dissatisfied with its final state. [CNN/Politics]
McConnell’s signature behavior over the years has been No victories for Democrats! Even more so than Only conservatives need apply for positions in the judiciary!
But this bill is a response to the Senate race runoffs in Georgia, a carefully crafted attempt at buying votes for incumbents Loeffler and Perdue. If the benefits of the bill are expanded to more money for direct subsidies to citizens, that will be a direct blow to his creed. Democrats will be able to use it in future campaigns. Democrats used Trump to increase the emergency benefit to you, while Republicans had to be dragged into it! Although Republicans denied increased benefits to you for no good reason! is also an effective slogan.
And the Democrats have seized on this opportunity:
Still, Trump’s message appeared to be greeted favorably by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who tweeted: “Republicans repeatedly refused to say what amount the President wanted for direct checks.”
“At last, the President has agreed to $2,000 — Democrats are ready to bring this to the Floor this week by unanimous consent,” she said. “Let’s do it!”
Will Republicans tell their beloved President NO! and risk the wrath of the wretched Trump cult?
Or will they fold and hand the Democrats a victory?
This is the problem of supporting a narcissist as your Leader. Trump has no loyalty to anyone but himself, and he has been disappointed that most Republicans are not willing to cross the line into autocracy territory and hand him what he thinks would be power, so he’s putting the squeeze on them by pushing on McConnell, who’s much more a leader than newbie Rep Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) or any unelected official. This is a tug of war between McConnell and Trump.
It’ll be interesting to see how it turns out.
