Voters Support Keeping Congress in Session and Additional Stimulus
By Ilya Sheyman and Collin McDonough
Last week, Congress passed the $2.2 trillion CARES Act—a stimulus plan to assist individuals and businesses, boost unemployment, and increase funding for state and local governments during the coronavirus pandemic. As many have already noted, this legislation does not do enough for individuals suffering during this time.
Compounding the problem is the fact that the House and Senate are currently on recess for weeks—meaning most legislators have left DC and have no chance to vote on anything until they return.
To understand voter opinion regarding these issues, Data for Progress conducted a survey of 1,243 voters from 3/27/2020 to 3/28/2020 about what Congress should do next.
The overwhelming conclusion from the survey is that Congress should not be out of session. There is life-and-death work to be done for the American people. If they do go on break, the ability to vote remotely is a necessity. This time can be used to speak directly to average Americans. To see what problems they are currently facing. To better understand what Congress can do to help them. That is their job, and we need to hold them to it.
First, we wanted to determine whether voters think that Congress should stay in DC in order to work on responses to the coronavirus or whether they should leave and return to their home states and districts. An overwhelming majority said that they should remain in DC, with Sixty-nine percent of voters believing they should stay, 15 percent believing they should leave as scheduled, and 17 percent unsure.
If Congress is to adjourn, and considering the potential concerns of members who are quarantined, a reasonable step to consider would be to allow voters to vote remotely, which currently they cannot do, as legislative rules prevent Congress from voting on any legislation without being physically present. This puts those who are sick or who are taking part in a self-quarantine at a disadvantage—as they cannot be present without potentially exposing their colleagues to the virus (Sen. Rand Paul aside). However, the chambers could change these rules to allow them to vote remotely. Again, in overwhelming fashion, voters support this change. Sixty-seven percent said they should be allowed to vote remotely, 16 percent said the rules should not be changed, and 17 percent said they were not sure. A majority of both Democrats and Republicans think that Congress should be allowed to vote remotely.
Given the scope of the crisis at hand, many people believe that further legislation is required to provide additional resources to Americans, ensure everyone has access to free treatment for coronavirus, and that there is enough protective equipment for healthcare workers. When voters are presented with arguments both in support of and opposition to additional relief, voters resoundingly, by a 63-point margin, support more relief (75 percent support versus 12 percent oppose).
This is consistent with previous research showing that the public is in favor of government action that fits the scale of the problem at hand. In a previous polls, we showed that more than half of voters support a stimulus plan that provides $2,000 per month until the pandemic is over. This dwarfs the one-time $1,200 payment to some individuals that was included in the CARES Act. This will not even cover the cost of a month’s rent in many places—let alone provide cushion for job loss, necessities, and other payments for those on a shoe-string budget. If an uninsured person were to get the virus, or be sick during this time, the $1,200 would not even put a dent in their large hospital bills.
Democrats attempted to use this time to fight for a progressive agenda that would serve the people during this pandemic. Fighting for a $15 minimum wage, adding employment protections, requiring paid sick-leave, and more were on the table, but they were swatted away by Republicans. Instead, the GOP decided to give bailouts to many industries that were affected by coronavirus.
Some Republicans have noted that they would not like to see a fourth coronavirus plan, which Democrats say is necessary to provide additional resources for Medicaid, food stamps, and state aid. According to the Washington Post, a White House economic adviser said the chances of this happening “are zero.”