Second Stimulus: McConnell Says Negotiators are 'Very, Very Far Apart'

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday that negotiators of the second stimulus are still "very, very far apart" on how much spending should go to the package.

McConnell tore into the House Democrats' plans for a second stimulus that was priced at $2.2 trillion.

He described the bill as "outlandish" and said the amount was "too high."

"Secretary (Steve) Mnuchin and the Speaker (Nancy Pelosi) are continuing to speak, but we're very, very far apart on a deal," McConnell said. He said both sides of the aisle were still in disagreement about the price tag of the second stimulus package.

The package, dubbed "HEROES Act 2.0" was unveiled on September 28. It will include a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks and $600 weekly federal unemployment benefits, said a CNBC report.

He said earlier in the day that the stimulus proposal was not a serious attempt to bring back Senate Republicans back to negotiations. He did not approve of the bill, saying it was "no more serious than any of their political stunts going back months."

He also warned that if negotiators refuse to get serious, "American families will continue to hurt."

Congress Adjourns in a Week

In a week, the window to come up with a stimulus package gets smaller as Congress is set to adjourn next week. They won't be expected to come back until after the election.

Pelosi herself said she was willing to keep the House in session until a deal has been reached.

So, despite disagreement from Republicans, she said House Democrats will move forward with the Wednesday evening vote. "We will be proceeding with our vote tonight on the updated Heroes Act in order to formalize our offer to Republicans," she said.

After setting the stage, they pushed it back until Thursday in hopes of allowing more time for a last-minute deal with the White House.

The plan from Democrats is unlikely to pass, especially with the clear Republican opposition. But even Mnuchin was hopeful that Congress can reach an agreement before it adjourned.

"We made a lot of progress over the last few days, we still don't have an agreement," he told reporters on Wednesday. He added that they still have "more work to do" and are "gonna see where we end up."

Without the second stimulus package, millions of Americans continue to struggle with food and rent. Many economists are urging congress to allow more spending to keep people and businesses afloat amid the pandemic.

Clash Over Stimulus Price Tag

From the very start of negotiations, it was clear that both Democrats and Republicans want a second round of the stimulus package. Another common ground was the Paycheck Protection Program and school funding.

The only sticking point was the overall price of the stimulus.

Democrats initially wanted a $3.4 trillion bill like the one they passed in May, but scaled it back to $2.2 trillion. Meanwhile, Republicans were closing off their end of the deal at only $650 billion to $1 trillion.

Mnuchin said negotiators will "give it one more serious try to get this done" and is hopeful that they emerge with a bill both sides agree to.

While negotiations on the second stimulus are still underway, a stopgap spending bill will fund the government and will avert a shutdown. All the stopgap bill needs is approval from President Trump.

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