U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday blocked a bid by Democrats to hold a vote to boost COVID-19 relief cheques from US$600 to US$2,000, despite President Donald Trump having urged Congress to do so when he signed a stimulus bill on Sunday. McConnell also urged members of both parties to override the veto by Trump of the National Defense Authorization Act, noting both houses of Congress passed it on a bipartisan level before the bill was vetoed by Trump. If the Senate votes to override, it would be the first veto override to take place since Trump took office. The bid by Democrats to boost stimulus cheques was to address only improving the financial aid, but McConnell said the Senate would “begin a process” to focus on several priorities outlined by Trump that he addressed when he signed the US$892-billion stimulus package. The priorities included the US$2,000 boost to direct payments, but also getting rid of the Section 230 legal protections for tech companies, and investigating election fraud.