Congress scrambles to extend eviction moratorium expiring Saturday
WASHINGTON — An eleventh-hour scramble Friday by Congress to extend the federal pandemic
eviction moratorium appeared unlikely to succeed as President Joe Biden called on state and local governments to step in.
The fledgling effort, which came ahead of the ban's expected expiration Saturday when thousands of people could begin getting kicked of their homes, was faltering in the House by early Friday evening. About a dozen House Democrats opposed the measure and are unwilling to budge, making passage impossible, two senior Democratic aides told NBC News.
"Definitely don't have the votes," one leadership aide said.
House Speaker Nancy Nancy Pelosi and the measure's sponsor, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., were at odds Friday over whether to hold a vote and force members to make their positions known publicly.
Waters wants a vote, which would allow progressive activists to blame specific Democratic lawmakers for its failure, while Pelosi doesn't want to expose some of her caucus members to the wrath of the base,
In a Thursday letter to House Democrats, Pelosi, D-Calif., urged her caucus to support the measure that would extend the moratorium through the end of the year.
“I am writing to call your attention to the imperative for us, the Congress, to meet the needs of the American people: both the families unable to make rent and those to whom the rent is to be paid,” she wrote.
The White House has already said that a recent court ruling means the administration lacks the power to extend the moratorium and pushed responsibility to Congress.
President Joe Biden released a statement that appeared to concede defeat Friday evening.