GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue support Trump's push for direct $2,000 stimulus checks

• GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue said on Tuesday that they would support President Donald Trump's push to increase direct stimulus payments to $2,000 per person from $600.
• The two Georgia senators, who are locked in tight runoff races, had been closely watched in recent days as the stimulus debate became a potent attack from their Democratic challengers.
• "The president has fought for our country from day one," Loeffler said. "He continues to fight for every single American. I've stood by the president 100% of the time. I'm proud to do that. And I've said absolutely we need to get relief to Americans now, and I will support that."
• "I support this push for $2,000 in direct relief for the American people," Perdue tweeted.

GOP Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, who are locked in tight runoff races in Georgia, said on Tuesday that they would support President Donald Trump's push to increase direct stimulus payments to $2,000 per person from $600.

During an appearance on the Fox News morning program "Fox & Friends," Loeffler expressed unwavering support for Trump and said she would back the president's proposal.

"The president has fought for our country from day one," she said. "He continues to fight for every single American. I've stood by the president 100% of the time. I'm proud to do that. And I've said absolutely we need to get relief to Americans now, and I will support that."

In a tweet, Perdue said he supported the outgoing president's proposal.

"President @realdonaldtrump is right - I support this push for $2,000 in direct relief for the American people," he wrote.

The stimulus debate has become a major issue in Loeffler's contest against the Democrat Raphael Warnock and in the race between Perdue and the Democrat Jon Ossoff.

Loeffler's and Perdue's support for Trump's proposal puts additional pressure on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky to increase the size of the direct payments.

On Monday, the House of Representatives voted 275-134 to increase the payments to $2,000 from $600, with 44 Republicans joining nearly all Democrats.

GOP Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Marco Rubio of Florida, and Josh Hawley of Missouri have said they would support $2,000 checks - a growing sign of conservative defections in favor of increased payments.

McConnell has not said whether the measure will get a floor vote in the Senate.

On Sunday, Trump signed the $2.3 trillion COVID-19 relief and government funding bill into law, despite his criticism that the $600 checks weren't enough.

Loeffler was initially on the fence about $2,000 checks, saying at an event last Wednesday that she would "certainly look at supporting it if it repurposes wasteful spending."

With Trump and the House on board with $2,000 direct payments, the Senate is the last key for the legislation to come to fruition. The checks would represent a significant increase in direct economic aid in a country that has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic.