Sen. John Kennedy: People need stimulus checks fast or they're going to break quarantine and work

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Sen. Kennedy: Louisiana needs more nurses, ventilators to fight COVID-19

Republican Sen. John Kennedy offers an update as coronavirus cases skyrocket in Louisiana.

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If Americans don't receive their stimulus checks during the height of the coronavirus pandemic, they will break quarantine guidelines and go to work and potentially worsen the crisis, Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy said Wednesday.

In an interview on "Fox & Friends" with co-host Brian Kilmeade, Kennedy said that it's hard for moving parts to be perfectly coordinated government but that the money needs to immediately make it into the hands of the American people.

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"I'm not going to criticize anybody. I think state government, local government, federal government, President Trump -- everybody is doing the best they can," he remarked. "Ideally, it would be the preferred route to have one purchaser of the ventilators: the federal government. But, I understand when governors want  to be proactive and want to go out on their own."

"We're using about 30 percent of our ventilators right now," Kennedy continued. "It's not like we're out. But, we worry, like everyone else does, about running out. Because we don't want to have to make a decision -- our health care professionals don't -- of who lives and who dies. I think we'll beat this thing if everybody will respect what the scientists tell us."

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Kennedy pointed out this is why the unemployment compensation program is so important.

"If people can't pay their rent or buy food, they are going to go back to work which means they are going to come out of quarantine," he explained. "And, that's why we need to get that money to people."

Last week the president signed a more than $2 trillion emergency relief bill. For individuals who earned less than $75,000 in 2019, the bill would send out one-time payments of $1,200 for a single household, $2,400 for couples, and $500 per kid nationwide. For incomes more than $75,000, payments would be reduced by $5 for every $100 of income that exceeds the limits.

Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said Wednesday the checks will be sent out "within three weeks" to people for whom the IRS already has banking information.

However, the discussion in Congress has since shifted to a "Phase 4" rescue plan with Trump pushing a $2 trillion infrastructure package.

"Well, number one, I'm not interested in any more of Speaker Pelosi's spending porn or any other member of Congress for that matter," Kennedy asserted. "Number two: we just spent, with the leverage, $4 trillion. We ought to see if it works."

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"So, I think we need to slow down and be mindful of what we're doing and let's see if what we just did works," he added. "I think it will if we can get the money out to people."

"We're going to beat this thing, but we're going to have to do it together and we're not going to do it just throwing money at it," Kennedy concluded.