Trump asks Congress to amend COVID relief bill, boost cash payments
Fox News correspondent Mark Meredith has the latest on the stalemate on 'Special Report'
President Trump has been swift to criticize a massive COVID-19 bill and government funding package over several elements, including the amount earmarked for foreign aid.
Trump called on Congress to amend the bill and focus instead on sending an increased payment to millions of Americans who have suffered economically during the coronavirus outbreak. Trump pushed to increase direct payments for most Americans from $600 to $2,000 for individuals and $4,000 for couples.
He said, "It’s called the COVID relief bill, but it has almost nothing to do with COVID."
"This bill contains $85.5 million for assistance to Cambodia, $134 million to Burma, $1.3 billion for Egypt and the Egyptian military, which will go out and buy almost exclusively Russian military equipment, $25 million for democracy and gender programs in Pakistan, $505 million to Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama," Trump said on Tuesday.
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Donald Trump Jr. retweeted a post from his father from 2014-- about a year before he officially announced his presidential run-- that mocked Washington spending.
"I hope we never find life on other planets because there’s no doubt that the U.S. Government will start sending them money!" Trump tweeted at the time.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and others for "conveniently" ignoring Trump’s "call to reexamine tax dollars wasted overseas while so many Americans are struggling at home."
Fox News' Dom Calicchio and the Associated Press contributed to this report
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