Trump criticizes COVID relief bill, demands changes

While Trump did not specifically threaten to veto the COVID bill, there's a chance this could delay relief checks.
Trump assailed the bipartisan $900 billion package in a video he tweeted Tuesday night.
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Fed pandemic lending programs a sticking point in COVID relief talks

Dec 18, 2020
Some Senate Republicans want a new COVID relief bill to prohibit the Fed from restarting pandemic lending programs.
The Fed programs include Main Street business loans and purchases of corporate and municipal bonds. Pictured: Fed Chair Jerome Powell at a House committee hearing on Dec. 2, 2020.
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What we know about the latest plan for more COVID relief

Direct payments in the range of $600 and extra unemployment benefits around $300 per week are on the table.
"What we really need in this package is a bridge to when the weather is warmer and the vaccines are disseminated," says Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
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Why hasn't Congress fixed unemployment insurance?

Dec 17, 2020
Congress was able to pass the CARES Act quickly, but its benefits expire Dec. 26. Will they be extended?
Congress has known what's wrong with unemployment insurance for decades.
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The one place in Washington, D.C., where bipartisanship is flourishing

Dec 8, 2020
The biggest, most lucrative lobbying firms in Washington are bipartisan.
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How should we spend future pandemic relief money?

Dec 2, 2020
Economic recovery could take a range of different approaches. Check out these three experts' ideas.
Sen. Joe Manchin, Democrat of West Virginia, hands a poster describing a proposal for a COVID-19 relief bill to Sen. Mark Warner, Democrat of Virginia, alongside a bipartisan group of Democrat and Republican members of Congress as they announce the proposal on Dec. 1, 2020.
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Mnuchin rejects renewal of some Fed emergency loan programs

Nov 19, 2020
Mnuchin said that he is requesting that the Fed return to Treasury the unused funds appropriated by Congress for operation of the programs.
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Will a "skinny" coronavirus relief package help those who need it most?

Nov 12, 2020
Kai Ryssdal talks with Gbenga Ajilore of the Center for American Progress, who argues that pandemic economic relief should be more inclusive.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell meets with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office in July.
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Paid sick leave prevents thousands of COVID cases daily, study says

Nov 5, 2020
But the U.S. is way behind most developed countries in mandating paid sick leave.
Nurse and health care workers in the Bronx, New York, rally against a policy requiring a doctor's note to receive paid sick leave in April.
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How the election will shape economic policy before inauguration

Nov 3, 2020
Analysts predict the outcome of the election will play a key role in what legislation makes it through the legislative process before the end of this year.
David Daley, author of "Unrigged: How Americans Are Battling Back to Save Democracy," says gerrymandering has allowed some politicians to safely ignore the will of voters.
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