Trump Admin Proposes Bill to Extend Unemployment Benefit, Stimulus Package Talks Still Afloat

The officials of the Trump administration suggested the potential short-circuiting free-ranging stimulus conversations with the Democrats on Sunday to quickly deal on legal business a bill that prioritizes the prolonged federal unemployment benefits, which will be expiring for millions of American this week.

Mark Meadow, chief of staff of the White House, uttered that he would want to witness lawmakers take action on the extension and alteration of the unemployment program, provide tax credits to businesses to ease costs of reopening, and grant new liability protections to employers this week, while a long list of other objectives including the priorities of the Democrats is being set aside. He added that after the bill will be passed then they will be able to work out on the rest of the bill in the upcoming weeks.

The proposal, which was repeated by Steven Mnuchin, Treasury Secretary, on his Sunday interview, was the last-resort effort by the Republicans to avert the program from terminating as signs show that the economy of the state was once again declining amidst the increase in the number of the coronavirus cases.

However, as the Trump administration prepared to introduce their broader relief legislation on Monday, it resulted in a concession with the Republicans. The party has already been slowed by their internal divisions, were doubtful to step foot on a comprehensive relief package deal with the Democrats before millions begin to lose their $600-a-week jobless benefit that assisted in containing the economic crisis, The New York Times reported.

With Democrats already having a record on opposition to a tactical approach, a narrow fix by the Republicans is almost definitely dead on arrival. Republicans are aware that recommending their proposal on Sunday may to some extent be a negotiating tactic setting the groundwork to hold the opposition party responsible when the funds eventually expire.

Democrats have passed their $3 trillion worth proposal, which included money to bail out cities and states, entirely fund the $600 federal jobless benefit, and add billions more to the health care system of the state, in May and view the time pinch that has become a problem of Republicans making that only grants them extra power in adapting a final bill.

According to Star Tribune, on Sunday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi articulated during the CBS program "Face the Nation" that they have been anxious in negotiating for two months and 10 days, adding that the Congress could not leave the town for its yearly August recess until a deal was struck. She also noted that she spent her weekend waiting at what the other party would say and begin the talks.

Ms. Pelosi said that what is currently happening is an emergency and that she could not get what are the people from the other party are against working families in America to keep it going too long.

In addition to the divergence in the negotiation tactic, the two parties have very contrasting views on handling even the narrow set of issues recognized by the White House. Republicans were recommending to alter the jobless benefits program by replacing the $600 flat weekly payments with a plan that will replace around 70 percent of the lost wages of a worker, which is a change that is unlikely to be endorsed by the Democrats. And the Democrats have been strongly opposing an effort by the Republicans to grant employers new lawsuit protection from their workers, students, or patients.