Revised coronavirus aid bill headed to Senate, finally

Some Republicans concerned about bill’s mandate on paid leave

White House officials and the top Senate Republican said late Monday economic aid to households affected by the COVID-19 pandemic is on track despite concerns among the GOP rank-and-file in that chamber about the impact of paid leave requirements on small businesses.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said after huddling with senators late Monday that hangups in the House over a package of “technical” fixes to the bill passed by the House early Saturday morning were on the verge of being resolved. Minutes later, Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas — one of 40 Republicans to vote “no” on the bill initially — dropped his objection and the corrections were adopted by unanimous consent.

Gohmert had held out for much of the day’s pro forma House session, arguing he hadn’t seen what the actual fixes were. Finally the changes were revealed, with a 7:38 p.m. time stamp, and by 8:10 p.m. Gohmert was on the floor giving the resolution his blessing, telling the nearly empty chamber “what are being called technical corrections make the bill better than it was when it got passed in the wee hours Saturday morning.” Continue reading.