Blumenthal: 4th And 5th Coronavirus Stimulus Might Be Needed To Fix 'Mistakes' In $2 Trillion Bill

Blumenthal: 4th And 5th Coronavirus Stimulus Might Be Needed To Fix 'Mistakes' In $2 Trillion Bill

Some lawmakers are saying a fourth and fifth economic stimulus package are coming. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, told Just the News he’s prepared for the chamber to work on a phase four and five stimulus package after Congress passes this third round, which is poised to become the largest stimulus in U.S. history. “We're going to get this package done. The point is to get it done quickly, but get it done right. Still, it won't be perfect, and my view is there may well be a need for a fourth package, maybe even a fifth package,” Blumenthal said on Tuesday after speaking with business leaders in Connecticut about coronavirus. “We ought to be prepared to vote if necessary – maybe remotely. I'm prepared to come back to Washington,” he added.

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, discussed the status of the coronavirus economic relief bill Tuesday on a tele-conference with constituents. “I’m hoping that we will be back to you many times in the days ahead to talk about what’s in this bill,” Beyer said, referencing the negotiations between the White House and congressional leaders on the third relief bill. Beyer thinks parts of the stimulus package will fail to address all of the economic fallout from the pandemic, so more stimulus packages will be needed. “We know this bill is going to be very good. It’s going to be over $2 trillion but it’s not going to be enough. We will have missed some people in certain places – things that just didn’t jump out to us initially,” Beyer said. "The mission of our personal team and the Joint Economic Committee will be to look at where this bill fails because there will be a coronavirus package four and five, and they will be the ones that fix the mistakes we made in two and three until we get it right,” Beyer continued.

Blumenthal addressed the challenges of senators coming back to Washington to vote on additional stimulus packages, saying he would support using unanimous consent to pass the bills. Unanimous consent does not require a quorum for a vote, so members would not need to cast an in-person vote. “There's also talk about how we might vote remotely, but we have to change the rules to do it. Unanimous consent may be another means of doing a fifth and sixth package,” he said. “We are working in a very bipartisan way and so the idea of unanimous consent is hardly out of the realm of possibility. I hope that we can come together as a nation and certainly we should come together as a Congress,” Blumenthal also said.

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