Senate Republican leaders said they’ll remain in session at least through next week, abandoning plans to begin a summer recess, in order to keep negotiating with Democrats on a stalled coronavirus aid package.
“We have been told we would likely be back next week unless we somehow finish this week,” Sen. Roy Blunt, a Missouri Republican, said after meeting with fellow GOP leaders.
A deal this week has become increasingly unlikely as bipartisan talks drag on without much movement. The two parties are trying to close a gap of more than $2 trillion between a GOP coronavirus aid package and a much more expensive Democratic proposal.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, who are negotiating on behalf of President Trump, warned that if a deal is not secured by the end of this week, they may not continue the negotiations.
The two men have been meeting behind closed doors for more than a week with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Today, they included Postmaster General Louis DeJoy to discuss Democrats’ concerns over Postal Service reforms they believe threaten mail-in balloting ahead of the November election.
When Meadows left the meeting with Pelosi and Schumer Wednesday afternoon, he told reporters, “There’s no agreement.”
Mnuchin said the two sides are continuing to work on a deal.
“We still have a lot of significant issues, but we’re plugging through,” Mnuchin said. “I think it was productive.”
The two top Democrats are pushing for Mnuchin and Meadows to accept much of their $3.4 trillion coronavirus aid proposal that includes a bailout of the U.S. Postal Service as well as “hazard pay” for some workers, extended unemployment benefits enhanced by $600 per week, and money to prop up state and local governments as well as failing state pension systems.
“I feel optimistic there is a light at the end of the tunnel,” Pelosi said. “But how long that tunnel is remains to be seen.”
House Democrats passed a $3 trillion coronavirus relief bill in May but have now quadrupled their original $100 billion allocation for schools and universities.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, described the state of the talks in bleak terms when he opened the Senate on Wednesday.
“While Americans are struggling, the Democratic leaders have moved about 1 inch in eight days,” McConnell said.
Democrats are insisting on a provision that would continue expanded unemployment benefits at $600 per week. The benefits expired in July, and Republicans agree they should continue but at a lower level that does not discourage people from returning to work by paying them a higher amount to remain home.
“What is unified is ensuring we have a support for those who need it, with the ability to recognize as conditions improve that that support can be lessened,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, said after meeting with fellow GOP lawmakers. “But how, in terms of the specifics, is one of the key things that is being negotiated now.”
Meadows said Wednesday he’s pessimistic about extending the talks beyond this week if nothing materializes soon, but Schumer said Meadows walked back those comments when the two met Wednesday afternoon.
“We will stay here as long as it takes to get an agreement, and we urge Mr. Meadows to continue to work with us, as long as it takes,” Schumer said.
Among the major sticking points is a provision Schumer says must remain in the bill that would eliminate a $10,000 cap on property tax deductions.
The cap was imposed by Republicans in their 2017 tax reform legislation. The cap impacts some of the wealthiest counties in the United States, many in blue districts where property taxes are high.
Schumer told reporters the provision needs to be included because it is unfair and hurts New York property owners.
McConnell called out Pelosi and Schumer for insisting on a provision that would specifically benefit their wealthy constituents.
“It’s a little too on the nose for the speaker from San Francisco and the Democratic leader from New York City to be holding up a trillion dollars in emergency aid for the entire country unless they get big tax breaks for millionaires in their hometowns,” McConnell said Wednesday.
Schumer said Wednesday Democrats are seeking money for state, local and tribal governments, aid for renters, and the $600 weekly expansion of unemployment insurance benefits.
Schumer said Mnuchin and Meadows so far are offering “some half-baked, poorly funded plan that won’t do the job.”
