As of last week, House Republican leaders said they expect at least some — not many, but some — of their own members to end up supporting the Democrats’ COVID relief package. As of this week, with a vote on the ambitious legislation just days away, expectations have apparently changed a bit.
CNN’s John Harwood spoke to a senior House GOP member who said he/she now expects “zero” House Republicans to vote for the bill. The unnamed lawmaker added, “Why would any Republican vote for this?”
This would certainly be in line with recent history. When Bill Clinton’s economic plan came to the House floor in 1993, it received zero GOP votes. When Barack Obama’s Recovery Act reached the House floor in 2009, it also received zero Republican support. If the vote tally looks the same this week, it would at least keep the streak alive.
But the question itself — Why would any Republican vote for this? — need not be rhetorical. Why would a House GOP lawmaker back the COVID relief package?
Broadly speaking, there are a couple of relevant angles.
The substance
At issue is a relief proposal that intends to do an enormous amount of good for millions of families. It would fund a systematic effort to effectively end the coronavirus crisis, while simultaneously bolstering the economy. The effort is very much in line with related relief measures approved last year, which enjoyed plenty of Republican support. To the extent that merit matters, Republicans should support the bill because it’s a worthwhile bill.
The politics
Not to put too fine a point on this, but we’re talking about a very popular plan, which has picked up the backing of plenty of Republican officials — including governors and mayors — from outside D.C.
Circling back to a point we kicked around a few weeks ago, consider the landscape members of Congress are facing: in the midst of widespread economic challenges, and against a backdrop of a deadly pandemic, a popular relief bill that’s likely to give the economy a dramatic boost is headed for the floor.
If you’re a GOP incumbent who’s concerned at all about your re-election prospects, you have reason to believe this relief package is likely to pass whether you like it or not, and you realize the proposal is going to leave the economy much better off, wouldn’t you think long and hard about backing the bill seven in 10 Americans want?
And wouldn’t you wonder about the kind of attack ads you’ll face if you don’t?
For those keeping an eye on the process, the relief package cleared the House Budget Committee yesterday, and is now headed for the House Rules Committee — which is the last stop before the floor. We may see a final vote in the chamber as early as Friday.
The process will likely be less smooth in the Senate, but Democratic leaders have voiced confidence in a vote on final passage the week of March 8, ahead of the expiration of some key benefits on March 14.
