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A group of young men allegedly ripped off $2 million in COVID-19 relief funds by stealing personal information from people in the assistance program, funneling their money to personal bank accounts, and withdrawing the cash at banks in Brooklyn and Queens. Many of the young men flaunted their ill-gotten fortunes on social media, posting pictures of themselves with large piles of cash, court documents show. Six of the eight defendants — ranging in age from 18 to 25 — were charged Tuesday in Brooklyn federal court, documents show. Two suspects — Armani Miller, 24, and Johan Santos, 19 — are...

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget wrote in an analysis Monday that the Democrats’ coronavirus bill contains at least $312 billion in policies unrelated to the coronavirus. The Committee released an analysis of the House coronavirus bill, stating that it: …is much larger than the needs of the economy, much of its spending is poorly targeted, it includes a number of measures unrelated to the COVID pandemic and economic crisis, and it would abruptly cut off aid to unemployed workers at the end of August.

The top Republican on the House's tax-writing committee blasted the Democrats' $3 trillion coronavirus relief legislation as a "recipe for a prolonged recession." Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, accused Democrats Wednesday of being more concerned about helping special interests than getting the economy back up and running before the 33 million Americans who are temporarily jobless become permanently out of work. "The word cannabis appears more times in Democrats' bill than the word job," said Brady, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee.

Tucked inside House Democrats’ new coronavirus bill is language that would create a loophole in states’ voter ID requirements, allowing people to cast ballots without having to prove who they are. While the crux of the bill, revealed Tuesday, is a massive injection of taxpayer aid for states, localities and federal agencies dealing with the virus, Democrats also tackled some of their long-standing political goals. One section of the bill would require states to allow at least 15 days of in-person early voting before Election Day this year, and to also allow voting by mail for any reason, overriding states...

The CARES Act, the $2 trillion coronavirus emergency relief bill that serves as Phase Three of Congress's coronavirus relief efforts, has passed the House of Representatives. It is the largest stimulus package in U.S. history and aims to provide funding for hospitals, and targeted relief for small businesses. The successful vote comes after hours of cantankerous debate, in which one unhinged Democratic representative was ruled " out of order " on the House floor. Once the measure finally passed, the entire House erupted - in a positive way. Lisa Desjardins ✔@LisaDNews WOW and just like that, the motion is adopted....

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday claimed that Democrats “won the day” in obtaining what they wanted from the Senate’s $2.2 trillion coronavirus response stimulus package, while hinting at other items she would like to see included in a forthcoming bill. Pelosi described the negotiations as a “jiu-jitsu” moment in securing legislation that she described as worker-first instead of corporate-focused, but still said Democrats walked away with “not getting everything we want” out of the bill. “As I’ve said, there are so many things we didn’t get in any of these bills yet in a way that we need to,”...

Three Republican senators are warning that they will oppose the $2 trillion coronavirus response package unless a “massive drafting error” in the legislation, that they say will create an incentive for employers to lay off employees, is fixed. Fox News is told the concern is that the current version could pay workers more in unemployment benefits than they're currently making, by sticking a $600 per week payment on top of ordinary benefits that are calculated as a percentage of income. This could disrupt the labor market further, the lawmakers warn. "A massive drafting error in the current version of the...

Congressional and White House officials said Tuesday a deal appears to be at hand to provide sweeping aid to businesses and workers facing ruin from the coronavirus pandemic. Both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the top Democrat, Sen. Chuck Schumer, said agreement appeared close on the nearly $2 trillion package. “I don't see any issue that can't be overcome within the next few hours," Schumer said. "Last night I thought we were on the five-yard line. Now we're on the two." Negotiators labored in the shadow of what McConnell called "the most serous threat to Americans' health in over...

There will be no new votes on the Senate’s coronavirus phase three bill Monday, delaying efforts to push through the nearly $2 trillion stimulus package. “We will not be having any votes tonight,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. Because of the failed procedural vote earlier Monday afternoon, Mr. McConnell needed to essentially restart the clock on a new procedural vote — teeing that up for Wednesday. The bill is stalled in the chamber as lawmakers continue to haggle over details within the economic stimulus package aimed to get cash to the American public, funds to overwhelmed healthcare facilities, loans...