Trump Tells Staff To Prepare Executive Order On Jobless Benefits Amid Impasse In Congress

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th August, 2020) US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he has instructed his staff to draft an Executive Order on extending unemployment benefits and other assistance to Americans should negotiations in Congress with rival Democrats on such aid remain at an impasse.

"Upon departing the Oval Office for Ohio, I've notified my staff to continue working on an Executive Order with respect to payroll tax cut, eviction protections, unemployment extensions and student loan repayment options," Trump said via Twitter.

Republicans and Democrats have been deadlocked in their debate on whether to extend a $600 weekly benefit to jobless Americans that expired last week.

Without an extension of the benefit or approval of a new one, those laid off since March due to the novel coronavirus pandemic will be left with no government assistance for emergency cash.

US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who heads Republican lawmakers, said on Tuesday that he was agreeable to extend the $600 benefit if Trump also agreed.

Trump's tweet on the executive order came as the Labor Department reported on Thursday that some 1.2 million Americans filed for first-time unemployment claims last week, adding to the 16 million that have sought such benefits since the height of the economic disruptions caused by the measures to contain the novel coronavirus.