Pelosi: ‘We Have Time’ For Stimulus, $908 Billion Framework ‘Just A Start’ And Government Will Not Shutdown

Topline

Following months of deadlock in Washington over additional fiscal stimulus relief, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Friday insisted Congress will pass an omnibus spending bill this month to avoid a stopgap funding resolution–or government shutdown–and reiterated that she would support a new $908 billion stimulus framework as part of the bill before working to pass additional legislation after President-elect Joe Biden takes office.

Key Facts

Crucial Quote 

“Finally, we have a new dynamic, a new president in a little more than a month committed to crushing the virus… and more than one successful vaccine to make all the difference in the world,” Pelosi said on Wednesday. “[The framework] is not everything we want–don’t get me wrong. I don’t want the Republicans to think that this is a dream come true–it is not, but it’s a path forward.”

Key Background

Washington has been deadlocked for months over additional fiscal stimulus relief as coronavirus deaths reached a record daily high in the United States on Wednesday, and surging cases threaten an already plateauing economic recovery. Though it does not include a provision for stimulus checks, the $908 billion stimulus framework released on Tuesday by a bipartisan group of lawmakers includes $300 weekly federal unemployment benefits, $160 billion in state and local aid, another $288 billion for small businesses (including for the popular Paycheck Protection Program of forgivable loans), $45 billion for transportation, $25 billion for rental assistance and $35 billion for healthcare.

Tangent

After a worse-than-expected jobs report on Friday, President-elect Biden doubled-down on the need for “urgent action” and additional fiscal relief in January even if a compromise makes its way into the omnibus spending bill. “This dire jobs report is a snapshot from mid-November, before the surge in Covid cases and deaths in December as we head into a dark winter,” Biden said in a statement. “If Congress and President Trump fail to act by the end of December, 12 million Americans will lose the unemployment benefits they rely on… emergency paid leave will end, the moratorium on evictions will expire, [and] states and cities will lose vital tools they need,” he added, referring to a slew of government relief programs currently set to expire by year’s end.

Further Reading

Hopes Dim For Omnibus Spending Bill Before Looming Government Shutdown Deadline (Forbes)

McConnell Says Stimulus Compromise Is ‘Within Reach’ As Schumer Criticizes Partisan Posturing (Forbes)

In Big Concession, Democratic Leaders Support $908 Billion Bipartisan Stimulus Plan (Forbes)