Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked legislation to add $250 billion to a small-business loan program designed to prevent layoffs during the coronavirus outbreak.
The move means that Congress won’t pass an expansion of the Paycheck Protection Program, which is running out of money, until next week at the earliest.
The Senate adjourned until Monday after Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) objected to holding a unanimous voice vote.
The small-business program gives companies with up to 500 employees, and in exceptions more, loans to cover payroll and overhead. The loans will be forgiven if they don’t lay off workers.
The program launched Friday with massive interest from employers, after unemployment surged by 10 million people as businesses were ordered closed by governments.
Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, had pushed for a package totaling $500 billion, including the $250 billion in small-business funds and an additional $100 billion for hospitals and $150 billion for states and local governments.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) urged Democrats to put off the other funding requests.
“My colleagues must not treat working Americans as political hostages. This does not have to be, nor should it be, contentious,” McConnell said. “Nobody believes this is the Senate’s last word on COVID-19. We don’t need to do everything right now.”
Cardin argued there was not an emergency for the small-business program, which was allocated $350 billion in a more than $2 trillion stimulus bill that passed last month.
Cardin said loan applications were being processed and that “every small business that’s eligible to receive the Paycheck Protection Plan, we’re going to support their applications being received, processed and fully funded, and we will put as much money as needed.”
At a press conference Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Republicans staged a political “stunt” by trying to approve the measure without consensus.
“We have a framework for bipartisanship. Let’s let that continue,” Pelosi said. “Not just a quarter-billion dollars and 48 hours, and the chairman of the Senate says, ‘I will take it up under unanimous consent without consultation.’ Let me say this clearly: What the [Treasury] secretary requested, and the bill that the Senate majority leader brought to the floor, would never pass the House by unanimous consent.”
But Republicans said it was ridiculous for Democrats to slow-walk relief to small businesses.
The program “is approving over $3 billion a hour to #SmallBusiness & will run out of funds in less than a week,” tweeted Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who helped develop the program as chairman of the Senate Small Business Committee.
“The livelihoods of the American people are at stake! What a shameful display of partisan showmanship,” wrote Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC).
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, signaled the move would become an election issue. “The American people are going to hold Democrats accountable for blocking money to people who are hurting,” Cheney said in a statement.
The large stimulus bill that passed last month was the product of painstaking negotiations between the White House and Senate Democrats. It also included a provision for checks of $1,200 for people earning up to $75,000 — which start going out Thursday.