A new attempt to restart economic relief negotiations between the White House and Democrats ended just minutes after it began yesterday, with President Trump appearing to cast doubt on the whole process by announcing a deal is “not going to happen,” the Washington Post reported. Just a few days earlier, he had suggested the he was open to a new round of talks. In declaring the whole process over, Trump used a news conference to criticize Democrats’ proposals for funding election preparations and the Postal Service as part of a broader spending measure. Those were among multiple issues that divided the parties during two weeks of negotiations that initially collapsed Friday before a failed attempt to revive them Wednesday. His comments came hours after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke for the first time since the talks fell apart last week. But their conversation did not break the impasse, instead leading to another round of finger-pointing. Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) issued a statement after Pelosi’s conversation with Mnuchin, accusing the administration of “refusing to budge.” That was followed by a statement from Mnuchin, accusing Pelosi of mischaracterizing their conversation and proclaiming that Democrats “have no interest in negotiating.” At the center of the relief negotiations was an effort to renew key parts of the $2 trillion Cares Act, which Congress passed in March. That law offered enhanced unemployment benefits to 30 million Americans, extended eviction protections, and included other provisions meant to soften the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The jobless aid and eviction protections expired at the end of July. During his news conference, Trump touted executive actions he took over the weekend, which he claimed would limit evictions, extend a new form of jobless aid and defer payroll taxes, among other things. Because these measures were done by executive action and without the approval of Congress, it’s unclear how they will work. Congress passed four bipartisan coronavirus relief bills in March and April, pumping around $3 trillion into the economy, but Democrats and many Republicans believed additional stimulus was necessary given the fragile economy. But as they launched serious negotiations last month, the parties were far apart. Democrats backed a $3.4 trillion bill the House passed in May, while Senate Republicans eventually put forward a $1 trillion bill that even some in their own ranks opposed. A substantial group of Senate Republicans do not want to any more money.
