As the country suffers an unprecedented increase in coronavirus infections, millions of families have been waiting for months for new government assistance to cope with the economic crisis caused by the pandemic.
But the White House has left the negotiations of this package in the hands of a divided Congress.
It
took a step back
and left the hitherto Senate Majority Leader, Republican Mitch McConnell, with the task of rekindling the stalled talks, two people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Administration's backtracking occurs despite the fact that Trump had pledged to pass a $ 2 trillion bill after the election.
But in recent days his attention has turned to trying to overturn the victory of Democratic candidate Joe Biden.
Negotiations continue in limbo.
To the loss of Democratic seats in the House of Representatives, controlled by this party, we must add the refusal of some Republicans to accept the victory of Joe Biden as president-elect and the uncertainty about the control of the Senate after the elections.
Two key seats in Georgia will be decided in the second round in January, so it
is not yet known which party has control of the upper house
.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said Thursday that she continues to support the injection of at least 2.2 trillion dollars into the country's health system and economy.
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The California Democrat, who will see the majority of her party shrink by at least six seats after the 2020 election, cited Wednesday's record 143,231 new COVID-19 infections as
reason to move in that direction
.
This in the midst of an economy marked by high unemployment.
According to data from the Department of Labor, there are still 12 million jobs still to be recovered to return to pre-COVID-19 levels.
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"We are in the same place, even more so with the pandemic," said Pelosi.
"Look at those numbers!" He exclaimed.
Pelosi called on Republicans to "stop this circus and get to work on what really matters to the American people: their health and financial security."
"It is very unfortunate that the Republicans have decided that they will not respect the will of the people," Pelosi added.
"It's like the house is on fire and they refuse to pour water on it."
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McConnell reiterated that the Republicans who control the Senate
simply will not accept
a bill the size that New York Democrat Chuck Schumer, a minority leader in the Upper House, and Pelosi want.
"It is not a place that I think we are willing to go. But I do think another package is needed. Hopefully, we can get out of the stalemate that we have been in for four or five months and get serious about doing something that be appropriate, "McConnell said.
For the Republican, this package should resemble his party's $ 500 billion proposal that the Senate Democrats blocked before the elections, and which is even less than what the Secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, who was the main negotiator. Republican, he had offered in the talks.
On Thursday, after speaking with Biden,
Democrats agreed on the need to remove the package before the new president-elect takes office
.
And they set the benchmarks for an agreement that "provides resources to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, relief for working families and small businesses, support for state and local governments trying to keep workers on the front lines. on payroll, expanded unemployment insurance and affordable health care for millions of families. "
Schumer maintained that the refusal of many Republican senators to recognize Biden as president-elect, while President Donald Trump makes a level of baseless allegations of voter fraud, has hampered efforts to govern during the crisis.
"Joe Biden has won. Now go ahead and work with us to resolve the Covid crisis," he said.
"Let's unite the country and get things done."
By Gabriela Martínez with information from AP, Bloomberg, CNBC and CNN.