The Senate is going to vote on the House's coronavirus emergency relief bill "as soon as" they get permission, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell explained at his press briefing. There will be pushback from wary Republicans, but “my counsel is to gag and vote for it anyway,” the leader added.
But, after that vote, Senate Republicans are going to write a much broader proposal, McConnell continued. He created three task forces among Senate Republicans who have been asked to come up with the next bill.
"We're trying to reach an agreement among ourselves as to what Senate Republicans and the administration favor doing next," he explained.
Several Republicans were hesitant about the measure House Democrats introduced because of how it would affect small businesses that may be overwhelmed by having to provide more paid sick leave to employees, without any sunset provisions. McConnell himself shared that concern in a Tuesday morning press release.
“In particular, it seems increasingly clear that the House’s effort to mandate that small businesses provide new worker benefits, just many small businesses themselves are in major jeopardy of their own, might even be actively harmful unless we urgently address a broader package that includes more and broader small business relief," he wrote.
McConnell promised that the Senate "will not adjourn" until they have passed a better, fairer measure.
It is my intention that the Senate will not adjourn until we have passed significant and bold new steps, above and beyond what the House passed, to help our strong nation and our strong underlying economy weather this storm.
— Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) March 17, 2020