Durbin calls for spending $3 billion on coronavirus funding as 'opening bid'

Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) is calling for Congress to pass at least $3 billion in federal funding to address the coronavirus outbreak.

The Trump administration has requested $2.5 billion, which would include diverting about $535 million from Ebola preparedness funding.

"Let’s start with an opening bid of $3 billion, but I will tell you beyond that we can find in a very a short period of time we’ll need even more," Durbin said in response to a question from JTN on Tuesday.

Durbin, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said redirecting federal funds for coronavirus from Ebola preparedness doesn’t make sense.

“The administration decides we’re going to walk away from the Ebola scourge in Africa. Do you remember when our president was talking about that nonstop as being a danger to the United States?" he said, referring to President Trump's past comments about Ebola during the Obama administration. 

"We’ve got to be able to focus our attention on more than one thing, and when it’s a public health threat like Ebola or coronavirus, let’s take all of them seriously," he said.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has said the Trump administration's funding request is inadequate. 

President Trump dismissed Schumer's criticism as opportunistic posturing in a tweet on Tuesday: "Cryin’ Chuck Schumer is complaining, for publicity purposes only, that I should be asking for more money than $2.5 Billion to prepare for Coronavirus. If I asked for more he would say it is too much. He didn’t like my early travel closings. I was right. He is incompetent!" 

Durbin was also asked if he thinks all flights from China into the U.S. should be suspended until coronavirus is under control.

"Certainly the infected areas or people transferring from the infected areas [of China] have to be our highest priority for excluding their coming to the United States or quarantining them once they come here," he replied.