Sen. Warnock: Passing COVID-19 relief package, stimulus checks is ‘urgent’
With his first two weeks in the Senate behind him, Raphael Warnock has passing a COVID-19 relief package at the top of his legislative priorities.
He cast a key “yes” vote early Friday morning for a budget resolution that paves the way for President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief deal. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer credited Warnock and his Georgia counterpart, Sen. Jon Ossoff, for giving Democrats control of the chamber and allow them to move forward with more COVID-19 aid.
Warnock has been consistent in his support for $2,000 direct payments. The Washington Post reported Thursday that the latest Democratic plans include $1,400 checks to people earning under $50,000 and $2,800 to married couples under $100,000. Warnock said in an interview with the Ledger-Enquirer and Telegraph hours before the budget resolution vote that relief is “urgent.”
“First thing we got to do is we’ve got to pass this COVID stimulus package. We cannot delay on this another day,” he said. “People in Georgia are suffering. And many of the people who a year ago were passing out food to others are in soup lines themselves. ...We’ve got to support our small cities and towns, and we’ve got to support rural Georgia as well.”
COVID-19 relief funding was one of several topics Warnock discussed during his Thursday afternoon interview. Here’s what one of Georgia’s newest senators has been up to in office.
Warnock’s committee assignments and representation in the Senate
Earlier this week, Warnock was appointed to several U.S. Senate committees:
- Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry
- Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs
- Commerce, Science and Transportation
During his campaign, Warnock was vocal in his support for fairer policies for small or minority farmers in one of the state’s top industries, and he said he’d fight trade policies that were harmful to Georgia farmers.
Warnock also spoke about the importance of representation. He is Georgia’s first Black senator, and one of only three currently serving in the chamber.
“I’m only number 11 in the whole history of our country,” he said. “I think this represents progress, but obviously we’ve got a ways to go. I think representation matters and the more diverse we become in our representation — I think it impacts the kind of public policy decisions that we come up with. ...The folks here have been kind and I’ve enjoyed the relationships that I’m building on both sides of the aisle so that we can do the work that’s necessary.”
Voting rights legislation
Warnock called efforts by Republicans in the Georgia state House and Senate to impose voting restrictions “anti-Democratic.” Roughly two dozen pieces of voting legislation have been filed in the General Assembly, and a large portion of them are Republican-backed bills aimed at absentee by-mail ballots or absentee voting.
Warnock is co-sponsoring the For the People Act which would expand same-day registration, in-person early vote and no-fault absentee voting. The legislation would also prohibit states from restricting by-mail voting. Warnock has also announced his support of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which could require Georgia to get preclearance from the U.S. Department of Justice before changing its voting laws.
“They’re creating a solution in search of a problem,” he said. “We know that voter fraud is virtually nonexistent in our country. And some people just don’t like the results.”
This story was originally published February 5, 2021 at 5:00 PM.