US House approves $ 3 trillion Covid-19 bill despite GOP opposition and some democratic defections

House deputies passed a bill of over $ 3 trillion Covid-19 with a vote of 208-199 on Friday night.

The measure was approved despite opposition from Republicans and some moderate and progressive Democrats. Fourteen Democrats crossed the party lines to vote against it and one Republican voted in favor.

The legislation, which reflects democratic priorities and was not a product of bipartisan negotiations, would represent the largest aid package in the history of the United States.

Democratic leaders in the House have argued that the package, which allocates funding to state and local governments, coronavirus tests and a new series of direct payments to Americans, is urgently needed to tackle the crisis.

Legislation should not be adopted by the Senate due to GOP opposition. Democrats also faced criticism and rejection by moderates troubled by the fact that the bill did not have broad bipartisan support and progressives who believe that the bill has not gone far enough to help Americans cope with the fallout from the pandemic.

Numerous moderate Democrats spoke out before the final vote, including vulnerable lawmakers in competitive battle districts.

Freshman Democratic Rep. Virginia’s Abigail Spanberger, Oklahoma’s Kendra Horn, Utah’s Ben McAdams, South Carolina’s Joe Cunningham, Iowa’s Cindy Axne, and Virginia’s Elaine Luria all stated in view of the vote that they opposed and indicated that they intended to object. vote against.

Where are the politicians: Democratic representative Haley Stevens, a freshman from Michigan’s swinging district who has been the subject of an intense lobbying campaign, announced not long before the final vote that she would support the bill. She was signaling to her leadership that she would vote against it, but had been under pressure all day, several sources told CNN.

Representative Pramila Jayapal, co-president of the Caucus Progressive Chamber, said Friday that she was voting against the bill. She and a number of other progressives had been frustrated that their salary guarantee proposal was not included in the bill.

GOP representative Pete King indicated in view of the final vote that he would cross the party lines and support the measure. The New York Republican planned to vote for the measure, his CNN spokesman said earlier in the week.

As a sign of how serious the rejection of Democrats was, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi worked to block support for the bill ahead of a final vote with multiple sources involved in the vote-counting effort telling CNN that Pelosi worked hard behind the scenes to make sure he got the grades.

Some other context: When asked before the vote how hard the vote worked, Pelosi said, “as normal” and that she was “confident” that the bill would pass.

Pelosi, a California Democrat, defended the bill Thursday against attacks that call him a partisan, saying: “We are putting our offer on the table. We are open to negotiations.”

Most Republicans rejected the aid package as a liberal wish list. They argued that it is too early to move forward with another far-reaching legislative response to the pandemic without first waiting to see the results of trillions of dollars in aid that has already been put in place.