This is EVIL.
Trump seems determined to hurt as many people as he can on his way out of office, perhaps as retaliation for voting him out of office.
Instead of signing the Covid-19 relief bill that took months to negotiate while millions of Americans languished, he declared he won’t sign it unless Congress changes it.
Normally, unsigned bills become law after 10 days unless vetoed. But if Congress adjourns before the 10 days are up — which will happen in this case– the bill dies. This is called a “pocket veto.” If he vetoed it, Congress could override his veto. By sitting on it, they can’t.
He’s lying about the bill, too — what doesn’t he lie about? He complained it “provided more stimulus funds for noncitizens than citizens,” which isn’t remotely true, and disputed other spending in the overall government spending bill of which it’s a part, such as foreign aid requested by his own State Department (read story here and here).
The pocket veto he’s threatening is a maneuver worthy of a spiteful Machiavelli. It’s calculated, coldblooded, and inhumane to millions of Amercans whose unemployment benefits will run out Saturday and who’ll face eviction 6 days after Christmas. It’ll also shut down the government and result in furloughing federal employees. Merry Christmas, chumps. I’ll bet some of you voted for him.
And where will he be? At his Mar-a-Lago resort playing golf with his rich friends.