As of this writing, there is no consensus yet on crafting a bipartisan coronavirus relief package, but the Trump Administration leaders and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) have continued discussions beyond the Speaker’s announced deadline of Tuesday evening. The Speaker reports that two of the unresolved issues are fiscal relief for states and localities (the most recent House-passed relief bill provides $436 billion and the Trump Administration offer is reportedly $300 billion) and liability protections. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) brought a bill to the floor on Wednesday, which is nearly identical to the Republican relief bill that failed to come to the Senate floor in September. Democrats blocked the bill from advancing, calling it “an emaciated version of pandemic relief”. Leader McConnell reportedly told the White House on Tuesday that he does not want to vote on a relief package before the election, but has publicly said that “If a presidentially-supported bill clears the House of Representatives at some point we’ll bring it to the floor.”
