President Donald Trump forced the months-long pandemic relief saga into overtime on Dec. 22 with the surprise release of a video statement in which he derided the mammoth spending measure’s “wasteful” provisions for foreign governments and demanded more money for American taxpayers. The president did not use the word “veto,” but all but implied that he would block the bill unless Congress removed billions in spending allocated to foreign nations and domestic institutions unrelated to the battle against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, commonly known as the coronavirus. Trump called for $2,000 payments for individual taxpayers, up from the $600 approved as part of the $2.3 trillion omnibus spending bill. Top Democrats quickly took up Trump’s offer. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has urged House Republicans to pass a standalone measure for the $2,000 payments in a unanimous consent vote on Christmas Eve. She made no mention of the …