Vox Sentences - “$600 IS NOT ENOUGH!”

The Senate considers $2,000 stimulus checks; Argentina could legalize abortion this week.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Cameron Peters.

• $2,000 stimulus checks are looking a little more likely on Capitol Hill this week after a House vote Monday and newfound bipartisan support. But there are still major hurdles ahead, including opposition from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. [CBS News / Aimee Picchi]
• The measure, which would increase recently passed $600 stimulus checks to $2,000 and requires two-thirds support to pass, has already cleared the House by a bipartisan vote of 275 to 134. [Vox / Emily Stewart]
• And it has President Donald Trump’s full-throated support. “Unless Republicans have a death wish, and it is also the right thing to do, they must approve the $2000 payments ASAP," he tweeted Tuesday. "$600 IS NOT ENOUGH!" [Twitter / Donald J. Trump]
• The Senate is where things get tricky: For starters, McConnell blocked a vote on the bill early Tuesday, and there’s relatively little support to be found among Senate Republicans. [Washington Post / Mike DeBonis and Tony Romm]
• A pair of upcoming Senate runoffs in Georgia, however, could shift the calculus for the GOP. Georgia Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, who are facing difficult races on January 5, have both said they support $2,000 checks. [AJC / Tia Mitchell and Greg Bluestein]
• Negotiations in the Senate are also tied up in an effort to override Trump’s veto of the NDAA, an annual must-pass defense policy bill. Sen. Bernie Sanders has pledged to filibuster an override vote unless the chamber also votes on $2,000 checks. [Vox / Ian Millhiser]
• A filibuster could not only keep the chamber in session through New Year’s Day, but keep Perdue and Loeffler in Washington — rather than on the campaign trail in Georgia — with just a week to go in the runoffs that will decide control of the Senate. [Politico / Burgess Everett]
• Even if McConnell does allow an up-or-down vote on $2,000 checks, it may not be enough to get the proposal over the line. But for now, it remains unclear if — or when — that vote might come about. [NBC News / Dareh Gregorian]