President Donald Trump on Sunday said some states may pay nothing of the additional unemployment benefits he approved in coronavirus executive orders signed Saturday.
The president’s order provides an additional $400 per week in unemployment benefits to help cushion the economic fallout of the pandemic, with states required to cover 25% of the cost.
Some states may not have to pay the $100 — but governors have to apply with the federal government first.
“We have a system where we can do 100% or we can do 75%, they pay 25,” Trump told reporters Sunday, according to CNN.
"So you know, they may be, they'll pay nothing in some instances or maybe they'll — a little bit like the National Guard, like the National Guard, as you know. Sometimes we'll pay all of it depending on the tragedy, or whatever it may be, the disaster," he added.
"Sometimes the state will pay 40%, 25%, 10% or nothing — depending on how it works out."
Several governors criticized the order. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said his state doesn’t have enough money in its budget to fund $100 a week in additional unemployment benefits and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said he was unsure if Ohio would be able to come up with the $100 state match.
“The answer is I don’t know yet,” DeWine, a Republican, told CNN Sunday. “The president has a difficult situation. He’s got a blunt instrument, that’s an executive order. He’s trying to do something. He’s trying to move the ball forward but I think what really needs to happen is Congress needs to get back and negotiate.”
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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