McConnell Bill Would Give Americans Up to $1,200 During Coronavirus Crisis

Americans stand to receive checks of up to $1,200 under Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's $1 trillion coronavirus stimulus measure aimed at blunting widespread economic effects of the pandemic.

Those who make under $75,000 a year would receive a direct payment of $1,200 under the bill, which was introduced Thursday evening. Americans who make over $75,000 would receive $5 less for every $100 they make over that threshold, while those with incomes over $99,000 would get nothing. Households with children would receive an additional $500 per child.

The payments would be based on the adjusted gross income from their 2018 tax filings, and couples who file taxes jointly would receive payment based on their joint income – for example, a couple that made $150,000 in 2018 would get a $2,400 check.

Negotiations on the Senate GOP's bill will kick into high gear on Friday when Republicans start working with their Democratic counterparts and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin comes back to Capitol Hill to help facilitate the discussions.

"These bipartisan discussions must begin immediately and continue with urgency at the member level until we have results," McConnell said as he introduced the bill. "The Senate is not going anywhere until we take action."

Most Republicans have lined up behind the idea of direct payments to workers, and the White House has publicly backed the prospect. But McConnell needs his entire caucus and at least seven Democrats to back his bill if it's going to pass.

Some Republicans have expressed reservations about the direct payment provision specifically.

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, typically one of Trump's fiercest allies, has been one of the most vocal opponents of cash payments.

"Direct payments make sense when the economy is beginning to restart. It makes no sense now cause it's just money," Graham told reporters. "What I want is income, just not one check. I want you to get a check every week, not just one week."

Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby of Alabama has also been critical of the proposal, instead advocating that any payments be tied to unemployment benefits.

Democrats are similarly not sold on the idea. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York has argued that a single lump-sum payment, if not combined with other measures, would be inadequate to cover Americans' financial needs, particularly if they lost their income or job because of the coronavirus.

"That might help families cover rent, groceries, for a month. But then what?" Schumer said in a speech on the Senate floor Thursday. He said that any payment must be offered in tandem with other benefits, and should be bigger and more frequent.

Democrats are pushing for an expanded version of unemployment benefits Schumer described as "unemployment insurance on steroids" that would be more generous and easier to access.

The "Phase 3" of coronavirus aid also provides $208 billion in loans to some of the industries that have been hit the hardest by the coronavirus pandemic that has halted most travel and dining out with $50 billion going to airlines who carry passengers and $8 billion for cargo air carriers. The bill also extends the tax filing day from April 15 to July 15 and gives individuals until Oct. 15 to make tax payments.

"To earn Democratic support in the Congress, any economic stimulus proposal must include new, strong and strict provisions that prioritize and protect workers such as banning companies from buying back stocks, rewarding executives and laying off workers," Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California said in a joint statement Thursday evening.