Congressman Dusty Johnson among lawmakers calling for $900B stimulus package

South Dakota Congressman Dusty Johnson and a bi-partisan group of lawmakers are calling for a $900 billion stimulus.

Johnson joined several members of the U.S. House and Senate at a news conference in Washington, D.C. where the latest pandemic relief package was introduced, a scaled down version of the multiple-trillion spending proposals that have come before it.

"We need something targeted for the next few months so we can have this infrastructure still alive and these businesses still alive when we come out of this in April," Johnson told the Argus Leader following the news conference on Capitol Hill.

Formally introduced in the Senate by West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin and Maine Republican Susan Collins, the bill would send $160 billion to state, local and tribal governments, $180 billion for unemployment assistance and $288 billion for Payment Protection Programs specifically targeting the restaurant, hospitality and entertainment industries.

Healthcare providers would see $35 billion in the Johnson-backed stimulus package and $82 billion for schools.

While neither House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have signed off on the proposal, Johnson said he's hopeful they will due to the bi-partisan nature in which it was crafted.

"Anytime you have eight Senators from both sides of the aisle come together to say that action is needed urgently, I think your chances go way up," he said.