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Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, predicted Thursday that the standoff over an add-on to the recently enacted coronavirus aid bill wouldn’t last long, saying the Senate will “work it out.”
“The ink is hardly dry on the largest spending package, certainly in my time in Washington and maybe ever, $2.2 trillion, and we know that just because Congress flips a switch doesn’t mean that it’s actually delivered to the people that we intend it to be delivered to, ” Cornyn told “Your World with Neil Cavuto“. “But I guess, you know, some people view this as an opportunity to spend more money before we even know how the third tranche, the CARES Act, actually is going to work.”
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“I think it makes more sense to try to fill the gaps [and] try to fix unintended consequences if it does, [than] to just pile on more cash,” Cornyn added.
Earlier Thursday, Senate Democrats blocked a $250 billion urgent request by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to shore up a depleting small business fund.
McConnell had sought to pass the cash infusion by unanimous consent with a skeleton group of senators, but Democrats denied the effort because they want add-ons to help businesses in disadvantaged communities and an additional $250 billion in funds for other priorities.
Cornyn called the blocked bill an “interim step” to replenish a depleted account that’s intended to help small business’ survive in the short term.
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“The only way we’re going to defeat this virus in the long run is to get our economy back up and moving again,” Cornyn said. “And I know we’re all anxious to figure out how to do that safely, but in a way that puts America back to work.”
“We need to get to this emergency as soon as we can be able to get our economy back on track,” he added.
Fox News’ Marisa Schultz contributed to this report.
