Congressional spending: COVID relief and much more

As the president marked the somber milestone of 500,000 U.S. COVID-19 deaths, congressional Democrats forged ahead with his 1.9 trillion dollar coronavirus relief bill, despite unanimous Republican opposition.

“The suggestion that Congress do nothing and let relief run completely dry before taking additional unnecessary action is just reckless, because we know what happens when you wait and see — when you do nothing. That is what republicans did for most of last year. It sat on their hands instead of making investments needed to ensure a successful vaccine rollout,” said Rep. John Yarmouth, chairman of the House Budget Committee.