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Washington – President Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have indicated their support for a bipartisan, bicameral coronavirus relief plan as the basis for future negotiations and called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to stand up. join talks on the multibillion-dollar aid program.
“Although we made a new offer to Chief McConnell and Chief McCarthy on Monday, in a spirit of compromise, we believe that the bipartisan framework presented by senators yesterday should be used as the basis for immediate bipartisan and bicameral negotiations,” said Schumer and Pelosi said in a statement. joint statement, referring to the Republican leadership in the House and Senate.
The change represents a major concession on the part of Democratic leaders, who for months had stood firm in their demand for a bill totaling more than $ 2 trillion.
It is not known whether the White House will support the $ 908 billion plan proposed by lawmakers on Tuesday. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said President Trump will sign a smaller relief plan proposed by McConnell.
The bipartisan group of lawmakers on Tuesday rolled out their plan, which includes help to state and local governments, small businesses and unemployed Americans. Like McConnell’s bill, this proposal would not include another round of stimulus checks.
The proposal would provide state and local governments $ 160 billion and small businesses $ 288 billion, including through the paycheck protection program. It is also allocating $ 82 billion for education and $ 16 billion for vaccine development and distribution, as well as testing and contact tracing.
For unemployed Americans, the measure sets aside $ 180 billion for additional unemployment insurance. The plan also provides short-term liability protection against coronavirus-related lawsuits, a priority for McConnell.
“Of course we and others will suggest improvements, but the need for action is immediate and we believe that with good faith negotiations we could reach an agreement,” Pelosi and Schumer said in their joint statement. . “In light of the urgency to meet the needs of the American people and the hope of the vaccine, it’s time for Chief McConnell to sit down with Democrats to finally begin a true bipartisan effort to meet the needs. from the country.”
McConnell’s plan is similar to legislation he proposed earlier this year, which was a targeted $ 500 billion bill focused on funding small businesses, schools and liability protection. Senate Democrats have twice blocked this bill, arguing it did not go far enough to help struggling Americans. McConnell advertised his proposal as a stopgap that would not solve all the problems, but would help provide the relief needed in the meantime.
McConnell’s bill would extend critical unemployment programs by one month. It would extend the Unemployment Pandemic Assistance and Unemployment Emergency Pandemic Compensation programs until January 31, with two more months to phase out the programs. These two programs are currently scheduled to expire at the end of December.
However, the bill does not appear to include additional unemployment benefits. The bipartisan CARES law, passed earlier this year, paid out an additional $ 600 per week on top of UI. This provision expired at the end of July, and Congress was unable to negotiate a deal to restore these popular benefits. It also doesn’t include funding for state and local governments, which is a priority for Congressional Democrats.
Mnuchin told reporters on Wednesday he believed Mr. Trump would support the bill.
“The president will sign McConnell’s proposal that he presented yesterday, and we look forward to making progress on it,” Mnuchin said on Capitol Hill ahead of a hearing before a House committee.
Mnuchin and Pelosi have been at an impasse in negotiations since the summer. They resumed discussions this week. In a letter to Mnuchin at the end of October, Pelosi blamed the current standoff on the Trump administration, saying Democrats still had not been given words on compromise language for a Obamacare’s strategic plan for testing, tracing and treatment, vaccines and coverage. for Americans without work.
The House passed a $ 2.2 trillion bill that is considered a no-starter by Senate Republicans. It is unclear to what extent Pelosi would be willing to consider McConnell’s restricted bill, given that Senate Democrats have blocked his similar legislation twice previously.
Members of Congress’ calculations are being influenced by the needs of unemployed Americans, with the clock for crucial relief programs due to expire at the end of the year. Twelve million Americans are expected to lose their extended unemployment benefits at the end of the year.
During that time, nearly 14 million Americans have contracted the coronavirus and more than 270,000 Americans have died from the virus.
Melissa Quinn contributed to this report.
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