Republicans are clashing over economic strategies to shore up weak polling less than two months before the midterm election, with the party alarmed that voter anger over high costs could sink GOP candidates in November.
President Trump has pledged to give every U.S. adult $5,000 if Republicans win in November. The proposal has drawn immediate resistance from across the party.
Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz of Texas said he would support the idea only if structured as a tax refund limited to people who work and pay taxes. "I think we should be incentivizing work. I don't think we should be paying people that are not working," Cruz said.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins of Maine warned the proposal would be "extraordinarily costly" and questioned paying thousands of dollars to people without financial need.
With the Senate in session for only three more weeks before Election Day and the House planning just one week of work, Republicans are scrambling to advance other cost-cutting measures. These include a stalled farm bill and a bill to cap credit card fees.
Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas is pushing his Credit Card Competition Bill, which he says would cut fuel and grocery prices by two to three percent by ending what he calls the Visa-Mastercard duopoly. Marshall faces a tough reelection challenge from Democrat Adam Hamilton.
President Trump endorsed the bill Wednesday during the midterm convention in Dallas. "We'll cut out-of-control credit card swipe fees, saving the average family at least $1,200 per year," Trump said.
The proposal faces stiff opposition from fellow Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee, according to a source familiar with internal Senate dynamics.
Gasoline prices have intensified GOP anxiety. The national average hit $4.30 a gallon Friday, prompting alarm among Republican candidates. Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, facing a tougher reelection race than expected according to recent Democratic polling, said rising gas prices are "a problem."
A Senate Republican strategist described growing alarm among GOP lawmakers that the economic picture will not improve before Election Day. "As long as the war in Iran continues, we will have high energy prices that will bleed over to consumers," the strategist said. "It just is a bad recipe."
