“We’re prepared to move quickly,” Mnuchin said after he and Mark Meadows, the president’s acting chief of staff, spent several hours with GOP staff at the Capitol. He said the president would “absolutely” support the emerging Republican package.
The White House and Senate Republicans were racing to regroup after plans to introduce a $1 trillion virus rescue bill collapsed Thursday amid GOP infighting over its size, scope and details. It was expected to bring $105 billion to help schools reopen, new money for virus testing and benefits for businesses, including a fresh round of loans, tax breaks and a sweeping liability shield from COVID-related lawsuits.
“The president has been very clear. He wants to make sure that the American people have what they need during this unprecedented time,” Meadows said, “to make sure not only the money is there but the programs.”
The jobless benefit officially expires July 31, but due to the way states process unemployment payments, the cutoff was effectively Saturday. Other aid, including a federal eviction moratorium on millions of rental units, also expires at month’s end.
McConnell, who spent time over the weekend in his home state of the Kentucky, said Friday he hoped a package could be agreed on “in the next few weeks.
Navy Vet