As Americans gear up for the election season, Washington is still focused on passing a second stimulus bill due to the global pandemic and outbreak of the Coronavirus, which resulted in record breaking unemployment levels. The real question, however, is if the Senate will actually be able to compromise and successfully produce a bill that ultimately helps Americans.

This past Thursday, the Senate failed to pass yet another attempt at a stimulus bill. The bill was rejected in a 52-47 vote, where not a single Democratic member voted for it to pass. According to Politico.com, 60 votes were needed for the bill to pass, but the Democrats chose not to vote and dismissed it as “a political stunt.”

Reminder, the Democrats proposed a bill in May, and the Republicans proposed a bill toward the end of July, which were both ultimately shut down. It seems as if neither side is able to back down from what they believe needs to be added to the bill.

As time goes on, we are going to start to suffer from the Senate’s unwillingness to compromise. Already, the executive order from President Trump, which gave out $44 billion in aid to the U.S., has been depleted to $14 billion. This money has been given out to 48 states so far, as well as Guam and the District of Columbia. As this money begins to run out, Americans are going to become more and more desperate for a solution.

Why should this matter to you?

Congress is set for a recess beginning on Oct. 2 and will not return in secession until after the election. What this means, is that, if a stimulus package is not passed by the end of September, it is unlikely Americans will receive any aid until after the election.

The most recent bill turned down included a $300 weekly extra benefit to Americans on unemployment, $105 billion to help reopen schools and would have let the US Postal Service recover by allowing them to not pay their $10 billion loan according to CNN.com. The Democrats are saying that this recent bill was too “skinny” and did not do enough to help Americans, while the Republicans said in May that the bill presented by the Democrats was too long and essentially a “wish-list.”

Regardless of what either political party thinks should or should not be included in a stimulus package, Americans are going to be the ones suffering if nothing gets passed. Neither party looks like it is going to budge on the issue, which is harmful to citizens and businesses nationwide.

This is not the first time we have seen Congress at a standstill, and unfortunately will probably not be the last. In a political climate that is chaotic and consistently aggressive, at least citizens can count on Congress to be more concerned about saving face than actually helping Americans.