Will there finally be breakthrough on COVID relief by Congress? Bipartisan group of senators to unveil another compromise package with days to go before unemployment boost expires
Lawmakers are scrambling to get another coronavirus relief package passed before breaking for the holidays as several different versions of legislation are still floating around Capitol Hill.
On Monday afternoon, the so-called bipartisan '908' group, named after the price tag on their bill, will unveil the details of their relief package.
Two people familiar with negotiations over the $908 billion package told Politico on Sunday that the legislation will likely be split into two parts, giving it a better chance of passing.
The first part would take a majority of the chunk of money – $748 billion – for less controversial coronavirus relief like funding for schools and healthcare. The remaining $160 billion would give money to local governments with a temporary liability shield attached.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called the liability shield his 'red line', and suggested dropping it completely so negotiations could move forward more smoothly. Democrats, on the other hand, say their top priority is providing money for localities to better cope with the pandemic.
A bipartisan group of 11 senators, including West Virginia Democrats Joe Manchin (pictured), are set to reveal on Monday afternoon the details of their coroanvirus relief package
The group has split the $908 billion legislation into two parts, one less controversial and the other including money for states and localities and a temporary liability shield, which Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (pictures) has called his 'red line'
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, part of the bipartisan group, noted Sunday that the lawmakers and their staffs have held regular meetings to iron out the details for the past month.
He said they had a call on Sunday to 'finish things up.'
'The bottom line is there's a lot of parts to this bill, and in the spirit of compromise, you have to work through all of that,' Manchin told 'Fox News Sunday' host Chris Wallace on 'But at the end, you can't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.'
Especially at the top of the minds of 12 million Americans who lost their jobs or were furloughed in the midst of the pandemic are the boosted unemployment benefits, which are set to expire in the coming weeks after already being extended by Congress.
In an earlier relief package, unemployment benefits were temporarily boosted to give more money and leeway for Americans who lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic.
Senators Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont, and Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, are still pushing for another round of direct payments this week. Toward the start of the pandemic, Americans making less than $90,000 were sent $1,200 checks as a way to help with families' financial situations.
Democrats and Republicans have been in a deadlock since the Spring, when the last coronavirus relief package was passed.
The bipartisan group of 11 lawmakers are hoping that by splitting the bill in two will create a better channel for finalizing a relief package before Congress recesses with the less controversial piece likely to pass and the more controversial part with liability shields likely to fail if it hits the floor.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is unlikely to fall for the ploy as McConnell's attempts to push off state and local aid and liability until next year have already been snubbed by Democrats.
The '908' group includes Democratic Senators Dick Durbin of Illinois; Joe Manchin of West Virginia; Mark Warner of Virginia; Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire; Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire; and Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine; Bill Cassidy of Louisiana; Lisa Murkowski of Alaska; Mitt Romney of Utah; and Rob Portman of Ohio. Independent Senator Angus King, who represents Maine, also joins the group.
The group will announce in more detail the specifics of their package at 4:00 p.m. on Monday afternoon.
The scramble to pass legislation before Congress breaks for the holidays comes as the temporary unemployment boost is set to expire in the coming weeks
Cassidy called the legislation 'the only bipartisan game in town.'
'We're the only one where people have come together from both parties and said, 'Listen, I'm not with you on that, but if you give me this, I'll give you that because we've gotta do something for the American people,' Cassidy told Jake Tapper on CNN's 'State of the Union' on Sunday.
Pelosi and Steven Mnuchin also spoke for a half-hour Sunday night – even though the Treasury secretary hasn't helped make meaningful strides forward in negotiations since before the election.
If McConnell and Pelosi decide they are ready to cut a deal this week, they will have multiple versions of coronavirus relief legislation to pick from.
Increased pressure on reaching a deal comes as the second wave of coronavirus continues to ravage the U.S.
As of Monday morning, more than 16.2 million Americans have tested positive for COVID-19 and more than 299,000 have died from the disease. This means the death rate for coronavirus in the U.S. is around 0.018.
To further complicate negotiations, appropriations and leadership are working toward a deal on funding the government for the rest of the fiscal year, or at least into the first quarter for next year. Government funding runs dry this Friday.
There is a glimmer of hope in the coronavirus saga as the first shipments of the Pfizer vaccine went out Sunday and shots could start being administered as early as Monday.
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