KANSAS CITY, Mo. — By now most qualifying Americans have received their stimulus payments, and some are wondering if another check will soon be on the way.
In an exclusive interview with Scripps' political correspondent, President Donald Trump said the answer to that question is yes.
"We will be doing another stimulus package. It will be very good," Trump said in the June 22 interview.
VIDEO: President Trump commits to 2nd stimulus. He says details would be announced in the coming weeks. The President would not tell me how much of a check Americans will receive. pic.twitter.com/Abd5E8P3Au
— Joe St. George (@JoeStGeorge) June 22, 2020
While a second payment is likely, the timeline is less clear.
According to the White House, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will be leading negotiations.
"We've been working closely with our congressional colleagues both in the House and the Senate," White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said on Monday, "I fully expect that he will lead the charge coming up in probably the second or third week of July."
In May, House Democrats passed the HEROES Act, which would send a second round of $1,200 payments to people who make less than $75,000. Households would also get $1,200 for each dependent, compared to the $500 allotted in the CARES Act.
But the HEROES Act is considered dead on arrival in the Republican-led Senate, which is expected to unveil its own stimulus package.
"It'll be very carefully crafted, and it won't be the $3 trillion left-wing wishlist the House cobbled together," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said.
On Monday McConnell did open the door to a second round of payments, hinting they should go only to lower-income Americans who make less than $40,000.
President Donald Trump has said he supports "larger" second stimulus checks than the Democrats, but he has not specified the amount.
If aid is to reach Americans in August, the clock is ticking. The Senate is on recess until July 20 and faces an August 7 deadline to get a package passed before another recess that lasts until September.
When the CARES Act passed on March 27, it took about two weeks for the first wave of stimulus checks to hit bank accounts.
CNET Associate Managing Editor Clifford Colby speculates the IRS could send out payments faster the second time around since the mechanisms are already in place. The timeline will also be impacted by the number of people receiving checks.
The Legal Aid of Western Missouri is offering help to those who still haven't received their first payments through its CARES hotline at 1-800-990-2907.
