President Donald Trump is pushing for a payroll tax cut as a way to help the nation's businesses rebound from their coronavirus shutdowns, but GOP Sen. John Barrasso said Monday he wants to see a specific proposal from the White House because he wants to be sure the more than 30 million people who are unemployed are getting the money they need.
"The president makes a strong case for a payroll tax cut," the Wyoming Republican said on Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "What we need to do needs to be targeted, temporary, and specifically focused on the impacts of the coronavirus...we need to make sure we are taking care of those people who are out of work today due to no fault of their own."
Instead, lawmakers may need to first look at the Paycheck Protection Plan, which "may need additional money sooner or later," said Barrasso.
Meanwhile, there are governors who are saying they need money for their states to avoid having to lay off police officers, firefighters, and other workers, but Barrasso said that less than two weeks ago, states got $150 billion through the CARES Act, and much of that money hasn't yet been spent.
"I think the states need more flexibility with that money in terms of how they spend that, but that's different then an additional amount that (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi has asked for, $1 trillion, and a lot of that is to bail out state pension plans that have had decades of mismanagement," said Barrasso. "I am not for that, nor are Republicans for that at all."
He said he is concerned about liability protection for businesses so that while they reopen, they don't have to live in the fear of lawsuits from their workers.
He added that his state is open for business again, as of May 1, and people are out and about "doing things sensibly," including social distancing and more.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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