U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Friday that economic statistics, including a 1 percentage point drop in the unemployment rate, showed that Congress should enact a smaller coronavirus stimulus package that is highly targeted at the pandemic’s effects, Reuters reported. McConnell told a news conference in Kentucky that the fall to a 6.9 percent jobless rate, combined with recent evidence of overall economic growth, showed the U.S. economy is experiencing a dramatic recovery. “I think it reinforces the argument that I’ve been making for the last few months, that something smaller — rather than throwing another $3 trillion at this issue — is more appropriate,” McConnell told reporters. But his call for a narrow package was quickly rejected by House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, who has been working to broker a COVID-19 stimulus deal near the $2 trillion mark with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Senate Republicans, who oppose a larger package, have twice failed to move forward with smaller legislation worth $500 billion due to Democratic opposition. Pelosi insisted that any agreement must include effective support for testing, tracing and vaccine development, as well as aid to state and local governments. Trump and his Republican allies have balked at Democratic demands for state and local aid, calling it a bailout for Democratic-run states and cities.
