Sanders to slow down NDAA veto override in bid to get vote on $2K checks proposal
By Jordain Carney - 12/28/20 08:17 PM EST
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is planning to slow down the Senate's vote on overriding President Trump's veto of a mammoth defense policy bill unless leadership agrees to hold a vote on increasing the amount of recently passed coronavirus relief checks from $600 to $2,000.
Sanders announced his plans in a tweet Monday as the House passed legislation to boost the amount of the direct payments included in the $2.3 trillion package signed by Trump on Sunday night.
"This week on the Senate floor Mitch McConnell wants to vote to override Trump's veto of the $740 billion defense funding bill and then head home for the New Year. I'm going to object until we get a vote on legislation to provide a $2,000 direct payment to the working class," Sanders tweeted.
A spokesman for Sanders confirmed that he will object to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) setting up a vote on the veto override of the defense bill until a proposal to increase the amount of the direct payments to $2,000 is also voted on.
Sanders can't ultimately prevent the Senate from voting on whether or not to override Trump's veto of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which initially passed the Senate earlier this month in a 84-13 vote, with Sanders voting "no" at the time.
more
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/531898-sanders-to-slow-down-veto-override-in-bid-to-get-vote-on-2k-checks-proposal
