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  • optimism got a further boost after US President Donald Trump signed into law a two point trillion dollar pandemic relief and spending package.

  • Trump backed down from his threat to block the bill and his demand that Congress increased stimulus checks for struggling Americans from 600 to $2000.

  • The president had condemned the spending plans as a disgrace.

  • The bill will now restore unemployment benefits to millions of people and avert a shutdown of government services.

  • Well, for more now on this, we're joined by Liz Sulka.

  • She's a policy analyst here in Berlin.

  • Liz.

  • Why did Donald Trump take almost a week to sign this crucially important bill?

  • There are a lot of factors that play that kind of influenced why Trump dragged his heels.

  • I'll never forget before he ran for president, he said.

  • I'm going to suck all the oxygen out of the room.

  • And if we look at the last four years, that's exactly his continual media motive.

  • Eso I think part of it was he just likes that attention.

  • He likes being that's sticking point, that bottleneck.

  • I also think he was kind of hiding some other things that were going on he wanted theater tension, rightfully so on co vid.

  • But however, he was hiding some ulterior motives while he pushed through.

  • I think at this point, almost 50 pardons for people close to him that could have potentially raised a lot more criticism in the media.

  • Um S O.

  • I think it was a combination of him wanting that attention as well as kind of like, Look over here.

  • Not here on also, I just don't think we can discount that.

  • He's always looking at the next election on.

  • He may very well in four years be pointing back and saying, Guys, I fought for you.

  • Lawmakers from the president's own Republican Party had to plea with the president to sign the bill before tonight's deadline.

  • What does that say about the current political climate in the US?

  • I think the current political climate is best summarized by the exhausted middle and what we're seeing when we see the two Republican senators running in Georgia, and they're both urging the president to sign this relief bill.

  • Folks average folks in their homes in their lives.

  • This takes so much more president over political theater.

  • Um and so what we're seeing is even conservative politicians that might want to oppose something largely trumpeted by the Democrats.

  • They just want something through, Um, folks are Folks are tired of this volley back and forth.

  • They're saying this has serious, significant economic ramifications and we'd rather you reach a deal on, get absolutely everything you want on.

  • I think that's kind of I like to be optimistic and and look at it as lawmakers getting back to actually governing and a little bit away from the political theater we've seen from Trump for the last four years.

  • Please, thank you so much for your insights.

  • That was policy analyst Liz Chuka here in Berlin.

optimism got a further boost after US President Donald Trump signed into law a two point trillion dollar pandemic relief and spending package.

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