Congressional Republicans are ready and eager to see the expanded unemployment insurance of the CARES Act expire at the end of July, and Senate Republicans are dragging their feet on the next coronavirus-related economic relief bill. Boy, is that ever the opposite of what voters want.
New polling from Data for Progress finds that a whopping 69% of voters say the CARES Act helped them or someone in their household. That includes 69% of Republicans, with just 19% saying it didn’t help anyone in their household. Even more voters—74%—support the CARES Act, including 64% of Republicans.
That’s not all. Large majorities of voters are concerned about the ongoing and possible effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including another wave of sickness causing more shutdowns, state and local budget problems causing layoffs, people being unable to pay essential bills, and more.
With the continued worries about the effects of the pandemic comes support for Congress passing more relief. Data for Progress asked voters: “The ‘Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act’ or HEROES Act is a $3 trillion bill which includes increasing aid for state, local, and tribal governments to fund education and public services, extending pandemic unemployment insurance benefits through January 2021, protections for essential workers, food assistance, and provides more direct payments to Americans. Do you support or oppose the HEROES Act?”
Sixty-six percent of voters said they supported the bill. Which, again, passed the House six weeks ago and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is sitting back and waiting.
Expanded unemployment benefits are keeping millions of people afloat, and continuing the extra $600 payments would support up to 5.1 million jobs, because unemployed people would still have money to spend. Just for starters. We need so much more. But Republicans will not have it—in direct opposition to the will of not just a majority of voters, but a majority of Republican voters.