By Glynn Wilson –

Like a modern day Scrooge, Lame Duck President Donald J. Trump came around in the wake of Christmas criticism from across the land, had a change of heart and mind, and decided to sign the bipartisan $900 billion pandemic relief bill after all from his Florida vacation resort Sunday when it became clear that Republicans in the United States Senate were not going to back him to increase the individual direct payment from $600 to $2,000.

House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California was more than willing to go along, and offered up a stand alone bill to increase the amount along with liberal Senators such as Bernie Sanders of Vermont. But the Republicans in Washington, all of a sudden worried about the deficit and the size of the socialistic package of aid, balked and vowed not to vote for a change in the legislation.

Trump’s change of heart came too late to save chaos from ensuing in two critical unemployment programs that had already lapsed, guaranteeing a delay in benefits for millions of unemployed Americans. But it came in time to extend the rental eviction moratorium and prevent an end of the year federal government shutdown.

The bipartisan legislation now signed into law came less than 48 hours before the government would have shut down and just days before an eviction moratorium and other critical pandemic relief provisions were about to expire. It offers a small economic lifeline to millions of Americans and provides billions of dollars for the distribution of new vaccines, funds for hospitals, schools, small businesses and money to keep the government open for the remainder of the fiscal year through September 21, 2021.

The legislation passed in both chambers of Congress before Christmas. But Trump created a humbug crisis when he blindsided lawmakers and White House officials with a videotaped threat last Tuesday to veto the package, calling it “a disgrace,” even though top White House officials helped negotiate the deal. The 5,593-page legislation was flown to Mar-A-Lago where the president went to golf and spend the winter holiday, withholding his signature in what’s called a “pocket veto.”

In an about face on Sunday, Trump relented and signed the coronavirus relief bill into law.

“The signing of the bipartisan, bicameral coronavirus relief legislation is welcome news for the 14 million Americans who just lost the lifeline of unemployment benefits on Christmas Weekend, and for the millions more struggling to stay afloat during this historic pandemic and economic crisis,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in response.

House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer, the Democrat from Greenbelt, Maryland, also issued a statement on Sunday night about the president’s change of mind.

“By signing this bill tonight, the President has resolved an unnecessary crisis that he himself created,” Hoyer said. “However, his delay caused millions of American families to lose unemployment benefits for a week while also causing deep anxiety and uncertainty for millions more who are struggling to make ends meet. Instead of signing this bill immediately, this president once again put his own political interests before the interests of the American people. Thankfully, this cycle of chaos and crisis will soon come to an end.”

House Democrats have been working since May to pass additional relief for families and small businesses, he said, which President Trump and Republicans rejected at every turn.

“The bill that has now been signed is an important step, but the deep damage inflicted by this pandemic means that more assistance will be needed, in particular help for state, local, tribal, and territorial governments,” he added. “House Democrats are committed to working with President-elect (Joe) Biden to take swift action to ensure our nation can meet the health and economic challenges of this pandemic.”

In a statement of his own, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Republican from Kentucky, applauded Trump for signing the package, without mentioning any of Trump’s demands.

“The compromise bill is not perfect, but it will do an enormous amount of good for struggling Kentuckians and Americans across the country who need help now,” McConnell said.

Trump is now claiming on social media that he got concessions for signing the bill, but news outlets such as the New York Times are reporting that he got nothing.

In his statement Sunday night, Trump said the House would vote Monday on a previously planned bill to increase payments to individuals from $600 to $2,000.

Trump said he would sign the Omnibus and COVID package “with a strong message that makes clear to Congress that wasteful items need to be removed.”

But now that the passed legislation has been signed, it is highly unlikely that the Democratic-led House will take up those spending items, according to the Times. And Republicans in the Senate have already signaled that such an effort would be dead on arrival in the upper chamber.

Trump’s statement also includes items that are not part of the relief and spending measure.

“Congress has promised that Section 230, which so unfairly benefits Big Tech at the expense of the American people, will be reviewed and either be terminated or substantially reformed,” he wrote. “Likewise, the House and Senate have agreed to focus strongly on the very substantial voter fraud which took place in the November 3 Presidential election.”

But of course there’s no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the election, which Trump falsely claims he won, and no action is expected in Congress. President-elect Joe Biden is set to be sworn in as scheduled on January 20, 2021.

A lack of a repeal of Section 230, which provides some legal protections for technology companies, was one of the reasons Trump said he vetoed the annual defense authorization bill last week. But Congress will reconvene in Washington after the holiday break and is expected to vote to override the lame duck president’s veto.

The stock market opened on an upswing Monday morning on the news that Trump signed the bill.