House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday assailed Republican "disarray" over a new pandemic relief package as the White House suggested a narrower effort might be necessary, at least for now, the AP reports. The California Democrat panned the Trump administration's desire to trim an expiring temporary federal unemployment benefit from $600 weekly to about 70% of pre-pandemic wages. "The reason we had $600 was its simplicity," she said from the Capitol. The administration's chief negotiators—White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin—spent a few hours at the Capitol later Sunday to put what Meadows described as "final touches" on a $1 trillion relief bill that Sen. Mitch McConnell is expected to bring forward Monday afternoon.
"We're done," Mnuchin said as he and Meadows left Capitol Hill after meeting with GOP staff. Meadows said the White House was "looking for clarity" on a "handful" of remaining issues ahead of Monday. "We have an agreement in principle," he said. Both Mnuchin and Meadows said earlier Sunday that narrower legislation might need to be passed first to ensure that enhanced unemployment benefits don't run out for millions of Americans. Apart from jobless benefits, Mnuchin said Saturday that new $1,200 direct payments would be based on the same formula from the earlier aid bill. Then, people making $75,000 or less received the full amount and those making more than $75,000 received less, depending on their income. Those earning over $100,000 would not qualify.
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