Congress must pass a coronavirus economic relief plan before Christmas or millions of Americans will face dire straits the day after which the holiday falls, Sen. Mitt Romney warned Tuesday.
"We better have it by the holiday because the day after Christmas you have millions of people who will lose unemployment benefits, so we need to act," the Utah Republican, who backs a bipartisan plan, said on "CBS This Morning."
Members of the House and Senate have come together for a COVID-19 relief package that will help people who are really in need and will include unemployment insurance extensions, rental and food assistance, paycheck protection plans for small businesses, and more, said Romney, and he's pleased that happened.
"I hope it gets taken up by the Senate and passed by the House," said Romney. "Going home for the holidays without relief to people who need it would be a huge mistake."
However, there have been so many people with different positions, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with a $2 trillion plan and Senate Republicans with a $500 billion proposal, said Romney.
But getting a compromise bill will depend on either Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell or House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring it forward or possibly pick out elements in their own legislation at the end of the year.
"Either way, we need to get help to the people that need it most as quickly as possible," said Romney.
The senator also offered a brief comment about the resignation of Attorney General Bill Barr, noting that he'd quit after he "drew a line in the sand" and President Donald Trump stepped over it with his ongoing efforts to "overturn the will of the voters."
"Bill Barr apparently had enough," said Romney.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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