Senate Republicans won a change to Democrats’ budget Thursday that would block illegal immigrants from getting checks.
The 58-42 vote came as the chamber was voting on dozens of amendments to the budget, which will clear a path for President Biden’s $1.9 trillion pandemic recovery plan.
Democrats envision a new round of stimulus checks and unemployment benefits, hundreds of billions of dollars in aid to states and local governments, and other assistance in the eventual package.
Republicans are trying to force Democrats into tricky policy positions, and they hit the target with Sen. Todd Young’s amendment blocking stimulus checks going to illegal immigrants.
Mr. Young said his amendment would maintain the same policy the Congress had adopted for two previous rounds of stimulus payments, on a bipartisan basis.
“This amendment would simply make certain that Democrats do not loosen the existing eligibility requirements,” he said.
Sen. Richard J. Durbin, Illinois Democrat, said the amendment would cut out U.S. citizen children whose parents are illegal immigrants.
Mr. Young said the lawyers had checked the language and that wasn’t true.
Eight Democrats joined 50 Republicans in backing the proposal.
In an earlier vote Republicans had tried to force any school assistance money to be blocked to systems that refuse to reopen.
Democrats united to block that proposal on a 50-50 tie vote.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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