Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin answers questions during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Treasury Department’s and Federal Reserve’s Pandemic Response” in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, December 2, 2020.
Greg Nash | Pool | Reuters
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will begin sending stimulus payments to millions of Americans as early as Tuesday evening.
In a pair of tweets Tuesday evening, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin wrote that payments “may begin to arrive in some accounts by direct deposit as early as tonight.”
He also wrote that the government would begin the process of mailing out paper checks on Wednesday for individuals without government-registered bank accounts.
The last-minute rush to send stimulus checks reflects the gargantuan task facing the Trump administration in its final weeks.
The latest revelation comes as the Senate works to pass legislation that will increase direct payments in the year-end coronavirus relief package.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday blocked Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer‘s attempt to unanimously pass a bill that would bump up the direct payments to $2,000.
The Kentucky Republican later Tuesday introduced a bill that would boost the size of the checks to $2,000 from $600, repeal Section 230 legal liability protections for internet platforms and create a commission to study election issues. The bill would meet all of President Donald Trump‘s recent demands, which are unrelated, but would not get Democratic support and become law.
Through the bill, Republicans would both avoid the act of actually passing $2,000 payments but allow GOP senators running for reelection in Georgia’s Jan. 5 runoffs to express support for Trump’s priorities.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
