White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Wednesday that he thinks another coronavirus relief package could still happen.
Kudlow, in a late afternoon interview with CNBC, said he spoke to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Wednesday, calling Mnuchin “frustrated” with the negotiations.
“Right now, you have a moment where I think you could come together in a sensible, targeted, efficient, smart package,” Kudlow said of a potential fiscal solution. “I’m not sure it’s over, by the way.”
Kudlow, who leads the National Economic Council, asked why Democrats “want this all or nothing approach,” and pointed to the stalemate.
He added: “We have closed the gap enormously. OK? I’m not sure the Senate Republicans would buy into it. But we’ve gone from the administration’s original position, which was about $1 trillion, now at $1.8 trillion.”
Kudlow has, on prior occasions, said that no further stimulus is needed, and in an interview with Greta Van Susteren that aired Sunday, said the economy would recover without one.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said last week in a speech that “too little fiscal support would lead to a weak recovery, creating unnecessary hardship for households and businesses.”
Earlier in the day, Mnuchin said a deal would be “difficult” to reach before the election. “I’d say at this point getting something done before the election and executing on that would be difficult, just given where we are,” Mnuchin said, speaking to the Milken Institute’s Global Conference Wednesday.
Trump has moved his position several times since abruptly halting negotiations last Tuesday when he tweeted that Speaker Pelosi was failing to negotiate “in good faith.”
On Friday, he said that he supports a coronavirus relief package bigger than what Democrats are offering, reversing his position from a few days earlier.
Mnuchin then upped the White House coronavirus aid package offer to $1.8 trillion.
