DALLAS (NEXSTAR) — Billionaire Mark Cuban is pushing the idea of $1,000 stimulus checks being sent to American households every two weeks for the next two months.
The “Shark Tank” investor and Dallas Mavericks owner told CBNC it’s critical two help the “two economies” that exist. Cuban argues there’s one for those able to pay their bills and one for those who cannot.
“Those without [help] are struggling badly,” he told CNBC. “We need to get them help.”
Cuban wants a “use it or lose it” approach where families would have to spend the funds within 10 days to help stimulate local economies.
“Once businesses start having demand, even if they’re closed and working online, then there is a reason for them to be able to bring back employees and retain those employees if demand is sustained,” he said.
This isn’t the first time something has been proposed along these lines. Back in July, more than 150 of the country’s top economists called on the government to provide ongoing stimulus checks.
The letter published by the Economic Security Project argued regular checks to individuals would help boost economic activity and provide stability for struggling households.
“Direct cash payments are an essential tool that will boost economic security, drive consumer spending, hasten the recovery, and promote certainty at all levels of government and the economy — for as long as necessary,” the economists wrote in the letter.
While both are nice ideas, Congress can’t agree on anything related to stimulus relief right now — let alone plans this costly.
Last week, President Donald Trump urged his GOP colleagues to “go higher” on a deal and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had their first talks in weeks about a stimulus deal. But days later, the parties were at war over the process of filling RBG’s open Supreme Court seat. And with Republicans pushing to quickly fill the vacated seat, most insiders believe it’s highly unlikely the sides would find common ground on a COVID relief deal.
At issue in negotiations for a potential fifth relief bill are a replacement for the $600-per-week COVID unemployment benefit that expired at the end of July, money to help schools open, assistance to state and local governments, and additional funding of a program that directly subsidizes business hit hardest by the pandemic.
The stalemate is politically risky and both sides accused the other of acting primarily with political calculations in mind. Democrats said GOP senators need to “check a box” and vote on any kind of relief bill before exiting Washington to campaign while Republicans said Democrats were intent on denying Republicans a political win.
During a hotly-contested election year, a package that includes direct payments to Americans could be seen as a big win for Trump, whose name was on the first round of checks. Though Democrats have favored increased stimulus spending, a relief deal has been viewed as a long shot this close to Election Day.
