Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill rejected the White House’s latest coronavirus relief proposal, which includes $600 checks for many Americans but does away with a $300 weekly unemployment benefit that Democrats insist on including.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced late Tuesday that the White House had proposed a new $916 billion stimulus relief plan to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that includes a $600 direct payment to single people and an additional $600 per child.
“Speaker Pelosi and I spoke today at 5 pm and on behalf of the President, I presented a $916 Billion proposal, which is a slightly larger package than the bipartisan proposal of $908 billion,” Mnuchin said in a statement announcing the proposal.
But Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer immediately shot down the offer.
“The President’s proposal starts by cutting the unemployment insurance proposal being discussed by bipartisan Members of the House and Senate from $180 billion to $40 billion. That is unacceptable,” the Democratic lawmakers said in a joint statement.
That $908 billion bipartisan proposal, which was circulated on Capitol Hill Wednesday, includes $300 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program — a Small Business Administration loan that helps small businesses keep their workers on the payroll.
The bipartisan plan, however, doesn’t address liability protection and funding for state and local governments, which have been two sticking points in negotiations.
