Nancy Pelosi hard at work building dessert stockpile
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MSNBC anchor Chuck Todd offered a warning to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. that their strategy in delaying coronavirus relief for struggling Americans may backfire on Democrats.
Republican lawmakers slammed Democrats for stalling the passing of further financial assistance for small businesses as the federal government hit the $349 billion lending limit on the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) on Thursday.
Todd told Hugh Hewitt's radio program that while Democrats are "genuine" in what they're advocating for in the spending bills, the perception of them being responsible for delaying much-needed relief for millions of people may be the unintended result of their strategy.
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"Look, I think any side that is on the side that looks like they’re holding up money, I think, is bad politics," Todd said. "I think that the Democrats are genuine in their sticking up for the governors here. I think that’s what they believe they’re doing. I believe they think that you know, Cuomo and Hogan are basically lobbying on their side on this... They’re like we need our money too."
"So I think that’s what Democrats are calculating, that this is, this is, you know, if you look at it through one eye, it looks like they’re holding up small business money. If you look at it through the other one, hey, governors are asking for their money. So I think that’s what the Democrats are calculating. I don’t know if that’s coming to fruition, though."
He elaborated. "I think that small business money issue is something that’s more front and center with the public than the issue of reimbursing the states. And so I think that on a perception marker here, sort of you’re short term politics, I think the Republicans have the upper hand."
Hewitt agreed, telling the "Meet the Press" anchor "you're never wrong."
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"It’s really interesting here, and they each, I think at times, almost miscalculated, right? I think when some House Republicans wanted to mess around, it was like don’t do that, you know," Todd said. "And one of these things, so this is one of those where Schumer and Pelosi, I think, could basically give them this, hold the chit, and then come back and be more powerful when they come back for their ask in three weeks."
Todd when on to ding the Democrats by comparing their "short-term thinking" to President Trump and that they're "worrying about tomorrow tomorrow."
Fox News' Perry Chiaramonte contributed to this report.
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