Sen. Warner on Pres. Biden’s $1.9T recovery plan and impeachment of Trump

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - Democratic Senator Mark Warner is criticizing parts of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion economy recovery plan. The senator is also sharing the reason why he won’t necessarily vote to impeach former President Donald Trump.

Sen. Warner agrees there needs to be additional direct stimulus to many Americans, but says Biden’s plan will send $1,400 checks to some who don’t need it. As for impeachment, he says he’s not automatically a yes vote.

A bipartisan group of senators, including Warner, told White House officials Sunday, January 24, any direct stimulus should only go to those who need it most.

“If we’re looking at a family of five that could have literally $300,000 of income and if that family of five has not lost a job or had any economic hardship and we’re saying we want to give checks to that family, but then cut back on unemployment for people who are in great need, that does not seem to me to be a very progressive outcome,” Warner said.

The senator supports language in a bill raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, and is praising the president for extending student loan forbearance via executive action through September 30.

“President Biden will probably come up with some other partial student debt forgiveness proposal. Again, there is some questioning of how do you make sure that may be for students most in need,” Warner said.

The House of Representatives is expected to deliver article of impeachment against Trump to the Senate on the evening of Monday, Jan. 25 . Warner says he won’t necessarily vote to convict the former president.

“I’m going to reserve final judgement until I hear the case made by Mr. Trump’s lawyers,” he said.

That said, Warner also said there needs to be accountability for the damages to the United States’ Capitol on Jan. 6: “I was on the floor of the Senate January 6th when the insurrectionists crashed into the Capitol and took over the chamber and, frankly, desecrated the building,” he said.

Sen. Warner is poised to become the chair of the Senate Intelligence committee, but he’ll have to wait until Senate leadership hammers out a power-sharing agreement. He said that should happen sometime this week.