Sen. Johnson has forced a reading of the coronavirus relief bill which is hundreds of pages long

"If they're going to add nearly $2T to the national debt at least we should know what's in the bill," the Wisconsin Republican tweeted.

By Alex Nitzberg

Sen. Ron Johnson made a move on Thursday that is forcing a reading of the lengthy coronavirus relief package in the Senate.

"I just objected to skipping past the reading of the Democrats' 628-page bill that was just introduced minutes ago. If they're going to add nearly $2T to the national debt at least we should know what’s in the bill," the senator tweeted on Thursday afternoon.

The Wisconsin Republican was on the Senate floor as the Senate floor staff commenced their reading, according to The Hill, which noted that a Republican senator will need to remain on the floor while the legislation's hundreds of pages are read.

After the bill is read, which was estimated to take five to eight hours, the Senate will debate the bill and various amendments for up to 20 hours, which is expected to begin Friday morning.