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Stock market tumbles as stimulus bill hits roadblock in Congress

Stock market futures tumble as stimulus bill hits roadblock in Congress
Posted at 8:12 AM, Mar 23, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-23 16:02:14-04

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is trading lower on Monday after a stimulus bill proposed by Senate Republicans failed key votes on Sunday and Monday.

The Dow closed tumbling 600 points on Monday afternoon.

The loss comes after stock market futures fell overnight Sunday into Monday. The losses signal a rough start to the week for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which closed its worst week since 2008 with a 4,000 point loss on Friday.

On Sunday, a proposed $2 trillion stimulus bill in a key procedural vote fell well short of the 60 votes needed to advance through the Senate. According to Politico, Democrats are seeking stronger provisions to deter corporations for using funds for stock buybacks or executive pay and are seeking more unemployment protections for workers.

After further negotiations, the vote failed a second procedural vote on Monday.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California), said Monday that she does not support the Senate bill in its current form, and indicated that House Democrats would introduce their own stimulus package — a move that would further delay the process in sending funds directly to Americans.