A late demand by the White House is only making fraught negotiations more difficult.
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Difficult negotiations on another economic-stimulus bill got a bit worse on Thursday. And with very little margin for error going in, this is bad news indeed.
Remember the state of play. House Democrats passed a large bill — with more than $3 trillion in relief measures — two months ago. President Donald Trump and the White House haven’t always been on the same page, but in general seem to support doing something big to prevent a further meltdown. Senate Republicans have been following a policy of “wait and see,” while reporting indicates that they’re just now trying to come to an internal agreement about what to propose.
Meanwhile, multiple deadlines are approaching. Expanded unemployment insurance expires in little more than a week. The possibility of a severe eviction crisis is increasing. And lawmakers will only briefly be back in session before a month-long August recess, so if they don’t do something quickly there’s a chance that they won’t act until after Labor Day. Or later.
Into all of this the White House on Thursday tossed another complication: Trump may veto the package if a payroll-tax holiday isn’t included.
