McConnell: 15-20 GOP senators will not vote for any coronavirus deal [View all]

Source: The Hill

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Friday that more than a third of Republican senators will not vote for any coronavirus relief package, underscoring division with his caucus.

"I think there are 15-20 of my guys that are not going to vote for anything ... It's a statement of the obvious that we will not have everybody on our side," McConnell told WHAS, a Kentucky radio station.

McConnell's estimate comes as congressional Democrats and the administration is struggling to reach an agreement after days of talks about a potential fifth coronavirus package as cases climb across the country and an economy bludgeoned by the pandemic.

If 20 Republicans voted against an eventual coronavirus deal, that means McConnell would need support from at least 27 Democratic senators to get the bill over a 60-vote procedural threshold and pass it in the Senate. McConnell said during an interview with PBS "Newshour" earlier this week that "about 20 of my members think that we’ve already done enough."

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/510094-mcconnell-15-20-gop-senators-will-not-vote-for-any-coronavirus-deal

"One Senator said: 'There are a hundred problems with the plan.' Another: 'It’s a mess. I can’t figure out what this bill is about.' ... Those would be harsh criticisms if they came from Democrats. But those quotes weren’t from Democrats, those were Republican Senators talking about their own party’s plan," Schumer said during a speech from the Senate floor this week.