The massive coronavirus relief package being negotiated by Senate Republicans now tops $2 trillion.
Larry Kudlow, who is the head of the National Economic Council, said Saturday the initial $1 trillion price tag for the measure introduced by Republicans last week has doubled to more than $2 trillion.
Kudlow is huddling with Republicans in an effort to secure a deal in time for a Sunday procedural vote. He said part of the funding is federal loan guarantees. The cost without those loans will be between $1.3 trillion and $1.4 trillion, he said.
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Kudlow did not indicate what additions in the legislation have added to the cost, but lawmakers are seeking expanded unemployment insurance as well as higher direct cash payments to lower-income earners who may not have qualified for full payment of $1,200 that the legislation initially proposed.
Democrats are making demands in exchange for their support for the bill, which is aimed at stabilizing the economy, which has been stalled by efforts to stop the spread of the virus.
In a memo to Democrats late Friday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, called the initial GOP proposal “a nonstarter” and said any legislation “must greatly increase Unemployment Insurance and Medicaid, help small businesses survive, expand paid sick and family leave and put money directly into the hands of those who need it most. “
Pelosi is also calling for more healthcare spending to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.
The legislation, she said, must focus on “rebuilding our healthcare infrastructure on a national scale and securing the resources to test and treat everyone.”
Democrats have started to introduce their own spending plans, even as they negotiate with the Senate GOP. On Saturday, Sens. Chuck Schumer, the Minority Leader and New York Democrat, and Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, introduced a bill to increase by $200 the monthly benefit for all Social Security, Veterans, and Supplemental Security Income beneficiaries through the end of 2021, which they said “would improve the lives of millions of Americans and help our economy stabilize and recover from the national emergency caused by the spread of the coronavirus.”
