Bipartisan Senators Talk Coronavirus Relief

A bipartisan group of senators are trying to iron out a new coronavirus relief package after months of stalemate among congressional leaders and the Trump administration, The Hill reports.

Included in the group are Sens. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Susan Collins, R-Maine. The group also includes Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., Mark Warner, D-Va., Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the Senate's No. 2 ranking Democrat.

The group is looking at tying the plan to a government funding bill that must be passed by Dec. 11, The Hill reported. The group is aiming for a more modest plan than Senate Majority Leader's Mitch McConnell's $500 billion spending package that has twice been blocked.

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., are seeking a $2.2 trillion package.

Many of the programs from the March CARES Act are set to expire near year's end, including a moratorium on evictions and extra unemployment compensation.

Warner said Monday it "would be stupidity on steroids if Congress didn't act before the holidays."

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