Trump team, Senate Republican agrees on coronavirus aid proposal for Democrats

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US President Donald Trump’s top aides said Sunday they agreed in principle with Senate Republicans on a $ 1 trillion coronovirus relief package – more than a week before the party’s talks in talks with Democrats Unemployment benefits ended.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows told reporters at the Capitol that he expected the package to be unveiled after the final details were clarified later Monday afternoon.

US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said the package would have extended unemployment benefits that aim to replace 70% of the previous salary of a scheduled job.

“We are done,” Mnuchin told reporters as he left the Capitol on Sunday. He said that some language was being investigated, but “there were no outstanding issues.”

Mnuchin and Meadows would not discuss the details, but the $ 1 trillion Republican proposal was expected to include another round of direct payments to individuals, a reduced federal supplement to unemployment benefits, and liability protection against coronovirus-related lawsuits.

An additional $ 600 per week in federal unemployment benefits, which economists say increased consumer spending and allowed workers to pay rent and mortgages, expires on Friday.

It had a share of $ 3.7 trillion in coronovirus aid approved in March, as the US economy took off. But widespread commercial reunification has been thwarted by a surge of viruses in states such as California and Florida, overtaking New York, an early hotspot, in total cases on Sunday.

More than 146,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 – nearly a quarter of the global total – and the country has about 4.2 million confirmed cases, a rate of 1 infection in 79 people.

Before heading to Capitol Hill on Sunday, Mnuchin and Meadows instigated the idea of ​​a one-piece approach to the next round of coronovirus relief, addressing items expelled while leaving other issues to deal with later. Mnuchin told Fox News on Sunday that the two most prominent issues were unemployment benefits and protecting businesses, schools and universities from lawsuits.

House Democrats passed their own $ 3 trillion coronavirus relief bill in May, which will maintain a $ 600-a-week supplement until the end of 2020.

House Democrat Nancy Pelosi, the top Democrat in Congress, said that when Americans are “on the verge” and starving, they criticize Republicans for not agreeing to a plan.

“They are in disarray and this delay is a cause of sorrow for America’s families,” Pelosi told CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Americans would receive a $ 1,200 check with tax credits for small businesses and restaurants as part of the new package. Kudlow told CNN’s “State of the Union” that the package would expand the federal moratorium of evictions contained in previous relief legislation.

Democrats avail 70% of a laborer’s wages, an extended amount rather than detecting a problem for some archaic state computer systems.

“The reason we had $ 600 was its simplicity,” said Pelosi.

On liability protection, Pelosi said Democrats would not support a scenario in which workers can be told they are required but employers have no responsibility to make the workplace safe for them.

Mnuchin told Fox News on Sunday that he was optimistic about an agreement with the Democrats.

“We can move forward very quickly with the Democrats on these issues. Mnuchin said, “We have moved faster than before, and I see no reason why we should not rush again.”