Tester Statement on President Trump Walking Away From Additional COVID Relief Negotiations

U.S. Senator Jon Tester today released the following statement after President Trump’s refusal to continue negotiations on an additional COVID-19 stimulus package until after the 2020 election:

“I’m deeply disappointed that President Trump called off bipartisan negotiations aimed at providing relief to hundreds of thousands of Montanans who have been hit hard by the pandemic. Since March, I have repeatedly urged Senator McConnell and my Republican colleagues to come to the table and work with me on a bipartisan package that will provide critical support to Montana workers, small businesses, and frontline health care workers. Montanans expect us to hammer out our differences and find commonsense solutions that help hardworking families across our state.”

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Tester has been in constant communication with Montanans from every corner of the state and has used that input to help push for a bipartisan package that focuses on supporting workers and small businesses. Since the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act this spring, Tester has been pushing Senate leadership on both sides of the aisle to work together to craft a targeted bipartisan coronavirus relief package that will provide support to Montanans that need it most.