Speaking during a meeting with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at the White House Tuesday, President Trump was asked about whether the federal government will subsidize or bailout states devastated by Wuhan coronavirus.
"What about the idea of aid to states? What do you think of this idea of Capitol Hill, Washington sending money to individual states who may be suffering severely through lost revenues and picking up a lot of the tab here," a reporter asked.
"I think there's a big difference with a state that lost money because of Covid and a state that's been run very badly for 25 years. There's a big difference in my opinion and you know we'd have to talk about things like payroll tax cuts, like sanctuary cities for example. I think sanctuary cities are something that need to be brought up where people that are criminals are protected, they're protected from prosecution. I think that has to be done. I think that's one of the problems that the states have," Trump said. "We're certainly open to talking but it would really have to be Covid related not related for mismanagement over a long period of time."
"It's a very simple distinction to make," he continued. "We're not looking to do a bailout for a state. It's unfair to many of the states, most of the states that have done such a good job."
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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he too isn't interested in using taxpayer money to bailout poorly run state governments.
"We’re going to push the pause button here, because I think this whole business of additional assistance for state and local governments needs to be thoroughly evaluated," McConnell said during a radio interview lsat week. "There’s not going to be any desire on the Republican side to bail out state pensions by borrowing money from future generations.”
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has called for federal reimbursement of his state.
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