Donald Trump at risk of ruining legacy by refusing to sign stimulus bill, warns Republican senator

Donald Trump refuses to sign stimulus bill

Credit: Tom Brenner/Reuters

Donald Trump is in danger of ruining his presidential legacy by refusing to sign the bipartisan coronavirus aid package, a Republican senator warned on Sunday.

Pat Toomey, a moderate from Pennsylvania, pleaded with the president to sign the $900bn relief bill, warning he would otherwise be remembered for “chaos, misery and erratic behaviour”.

“You don’t get everything you want, even if you’re president of the United States,” Mr Toomey told Fox News.

Mr Trump has spent the Christmas break golfing at his Mar-a-Lago” estate, leaving the 5,593-page bill unsigned.

The stalemate has seen unemployment benefits expire, leaving an estimated 14 million Americans without an economic lifeline at a time when the resurgent coronavirus has devastated the US economy.

The US president has complained that the bill, which comes back before Congress, is full of “wasteful items” and that the $600 stimulus – payment proposed by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin — was inadequate.

Trump supporters, such as former White House adviser, Sebastian Gorka, defended the president’s stance.

“There is an incredible amount of pork in the bill and he wants people to get more than $600, he is absolutely right,” he told the Telegraph.

“Given the noises that Nancy Pelosi is making, I think she realises she is in big trouble. He has painted her into a corner.

“She hasn’t sent Congress home, they are still here and there could be a climbdown in the next couple of days.”

Others fear that the president’s stance could cost the Republicans control of the Senate by boosting the chances of the two Democrat candidates in next month’s elections in Georgia.

Critics believe Mr Trump’s behaviour smacks of petulance, reflecting his anger at having lost the election – which he still maintains was “stolen”.

“It is hard to know what motivates him at the moment, David Gergen a former adviser to presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Clinton told the Telegraph.

“The theory which resonates with me is that he is angry at the world. He sees the pillars coming down and he wants to bring the house down with him to seek revenge for the treatment he has suffered.

“We have known for a long time that he wants to be at the centre of every story. He regards even a few days without being him being at the centre as days wasted.

“It is hard to think of anybody who is in his good books apart from his own family.”   Mr Trump’s refusal to sign the bill will have “devastating consequences” for the US economy, said president-elect, Joe Biden.

“It is the day after Christmas, and millions of families don’t know if they’ll be able to make ends meet because of President Donald Trump’s refusal to sign an economic relief bill approved by Congress with an overwhelming and bipartisan majority.”