The House is on track to pass a sweeping, $2 trillion coronavirus relief package Friday that will provide immediate assistance to workers, small businesses and major industries on the brink of economic collapse amid the ongoing pandemic.
But the House vote wasn’t without some last minute drama, as members from across the country scrambled to return to Washington amid worries that a single lawmaker would force a roll call vote, which could delay quick passage.
House leaders said Friday morning they still hoped to pass the massive package via voice vote around noon. But they had implemented a contingency plan — including asking lawmakers to return to Washington and instituting safety precautions inside and around the chamber — in case that wasn’t possible.
The 11th hour drama in the House comes after days of frenzied negotiations between Senate leaders to secure a deal and an intense behind-the-scenes lobbying effort by House leaders to ensure none of their members tried to delay the bill.
"We're going to pass it today. We will respect the congressional traditions and we will have a little longer debate than we had anticipated, and that's a good thing,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters as she entered the Capitol on Friday morning.
House Republican leadership has worried for days that GOP Rep. Thomas Massie — who argues that voting without a quorum is unconstitutional — will call for a recorded tally. Massie, a libertarian-leaning gadfly frequently at odds with leadership, drove from his home in Kentucky to be in Washington for the vote and was spotted sitting in the chamber when floor debate kicked off Friday morning.
In a series of tweets late Friday morning, Massie confirmed plans to demand a recorded vote, meaning members would physically have to come to the chamber to have their vote recorded. Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) tried to talk Massie out of it on the House floor, to no avail.
After it became clear Massie wouldn't relent, leadership started taking steps to block his move. Lawmakers were brought into the chamber, including in the public galleries above the floor to allow them to distance themselves for safety. By having a quorum of members in the chamber — at least 216 lawmakers, including in the public galleries — they could block Massie's request for a recorded vote and pass the proposal via voice vote.
But members were still irate that they had to be present at all, endangering themselves and the dozens of congressional and Capitol support staff on hand, all because of Massie's singular objection.
President Donald Trump lambasted Massie in a series of tweets Friday, calling him a “third rate grandstander” and suggesting Republican leaders boot him out of the party.
“He just wants the publicity. He can’t stop it, only delay, which is both dangerous & costly,” Trump tweeted.
Several conservative hard-liners rushed to defend Massie, with Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) telling Trump to "back off." And the House Freedom Caucus put out a statement opposing the massive rescue package, a further sign of GOP agitation.
The bill aims to prop up virtually every sector of the U.S. economy in response to a pandemic that has shuttered businesses, fueled massive layoffs and disrupted nearly every aspect of American life.
The measure provides a significant — albeit temporary — expansion of unemployment benefits, a one-time cash infusion for most Americans and emergency federal funding for food aid, hospitals and schools and universities. The package also provides a $500 billion lifeline to major industries including airlines, $350 billion for small business loans and $150 billion for state and local governments.
“This is about all of us as Americans, not as Republicans or Democrats,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said in floor remarks Friday.
Emotions ran high as lawmakers took to the floor. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) — who made the nearly nine-hour drive to D.C. overnight — refused to stop speaking after she went over her time limit, shouting into the chamber even as Hoyer tried to allow her to extend her remarks.
“I rise before you wearing these latex gloves, not for personal attention, not for personal attention, but to encourage you to take this disease seriously,” Stevens said, holding up her hands to show the gloves.
“I rise for every American who is scared right now,” Stevens said, raising her voice as she attempted to be heard above the banging gavel. Her home state of Michigan is among the five states with the highest number of cases, and a vast majority are in two counties that Stevens represents.
Ahead of the vote Friday, dozens of lawmakers made a mad dash to Washington, driving overnight from states like Massachusetts, Indiana and Rhode Island and boarding red-eye flights from California and Arizona.
Members initially thought they would have until Saturday to arrange travel back to D.C. if a Republican did, indeed, demand a tally of the vote. But that plan was scrambled Thursday afternoon, when Pelosi announced to members on a caucus call that she planned to pass the bill Friday.
Lawmakers of both parties fumed at Massie as they sought last-minute flights, grudgingly making plans to return to the Capitol even as they feared it could increase the risk of spreading the coronavirus among their own ranks.
Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) tweeted that Massie's possible move was "disgraceful" and "irresponsible."
"Because of one Member of Congress refusing to allow emergency action entire Congress must be called back to vote in House. Risk of infection and risk of legislation being delayed," King complained on Twitter.
Officially, more than 80,000 Americans have been diagnosed with coronavirus, including Reps. Ben McAdams (D-Utah) and Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). But health officials expect the actual number of cases to be far higher and rising.
Even before voting on the latest relief package, top Democrats were already talking about the need for a fourth bill to help rescue the economy. Just Thursday, the Labor Department released record-high unemployment numbers, with jobless claims surging to 3.3 million last week.
But some Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) have tried to downplay the prospect, saying they don’t know if there will be a need for a “Phase 4” bill.
Pelosi seemed undeterred, telling reporters at her weekly press conference Thursday that she planned to forge ahead with the legislation, working mostly from Washington, and hoped the other congressional leaders — McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (D-Ky.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) — can work with her on a deal.
After passing the relief package late Wednesday, the Senate adjourned until April 20. The House is also expected to be out for several weeks, if not longer.
In the days leading up to the vote, both Pelosi and McCarthy had strongly urged members in conference calls and in individual conversations not to object to the voice vote, which they said would still allow for a debate and a chance to vote in opposition without forcing hundreds of people on planes.
House Republican leadership spent hours on Thursday attempting to mollify concerns within their conference, convincing members like Colorado Rep. Ken Buck to oppose the bill on the floor but not force a vote. But Massie remained elusive, refusing to tell GOP leaders what he planned to do.
Worried about Massie or another lawmaker trying to force a roll call vote, House leaders had prepared contingency plans. Both parties’ whip operations kept a careful count of who was able to return, and whether they could reach a quorum on the floor.
Over the last week, several Democrats had urged their leadership to allow for remote voting. Pelosi has been firmly opposed to the idea, however, and has said that lawmakers who are able — after consulting with their own families and doctor — should return to the Capitol to vote.
The voting process will look vastly different than the House’s normal procedure. Members will vote in groups of no more than 30 members at a time in an attempt to limit exposure to other members.
Lawmakers were required to use hand sanitizer before and after leaving the chamber Friday. And only members who were scheduled to speak were allowed to sit in the chamber. Even on their way to votes, lawmakers were asked to ride with no more than one other person in an elevator.
And the Sergeant-at-Arms and the Capitol physician announced strict rules to keep members at least six feet apart at all times. But as floor debate began Friday, it was clear not all members were following the rules.
Melanie Zanona contributed to this report.
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