Currents News Staff
There’s still a stalemate on a stimulus package, and the clock is ticking.
“People’s eyes are fixed on Congress,” said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. “They need the House and the Senate to stop chasing our tails and make a law.”
A bipartisan group of lawmakers has proposed a deal that includes giving the unemployed $300 more a week for 16 weeks, $300 billion in aid for small businesses and a continued pause on federal student loan payments through the end of April.
The plan doesn’t include stimulus checks.
“We need a large bold program to stimulate the economy, help people out of the conditions they’re in,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, “but keep the economy going for a long period of time.”
Congress is trying to get a bill passed soon, because aid programs that were approved in March — including jobless assistance measures and eviction protections — expire before the end of the year.
“We’re not going home until we get one,” said West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin. “How can you face the people back home who have lost their unemployment check and lost their food assistance and they’ve lost their shelter, all necessities of life we take for granted.”
Sticking points include state and local aid and liability protection for employers.
“This need not be rocket science,” said McConnell, “but we can’t do a thing unless the Democrats decide they actually want to make a law.”