There was rare agreement among the Hudson Valley contingent in Congress on Dec. 28, as Republican Elise Stefanik voted with Democrats Antonio Delgado, Paul Tonko, and Sean Maloney. The House of Representatives voted for $2,000 direct payments to most Americans, an increase from the $600 payments per person just approved. The $2,000 payments are backed by President Donald Trump, but opposed by most Republicans. Stefanik voted with the Hudson Valley Democrats on that measure, which passed 275-to-134, and now heads to a stare-down in the U.S. Senate where Vermont's Bernie Sanders is attempting to force a vote that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell doesn't want to take. Stefanik also voted with Delgado, Tonko, and Maloney Dec. 28 to override Trump's veto of the defense spending bill. That veto override passed 322-to 87. McConnell does want a quick vote on that, but Sanders is vowing to hold up action on the veto in the Senate to assure there will be a vote taken on the $2,000 for American citizens during the pandemic.