White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the Trump administration wants to get negotiations on a coronavirus relief package back on track.
The National Economic Council director told Politico the White House is willing to work with Democrats on a new package.
But, he said, "there has to be a limit."
Lawmakers have been in a stalemate for weeks over what the next coronavirus relief package should look like.
He said the administration will not back the multitrillion-dollar proposal House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is advocating for.
Kudlow said "at least a third, if not more" of what the Democrats asked for funding for in their relief package was not related to the coronavirus pandemic.
"Much of the price tag on the other side of the aisle was not related to COVID," Kudlow said.
He said the Democrats' "laundry list" of asks was not "smart spending."
He said he would not go through the entire list of what they wanted, but he did single out a $25 billion allocation to the U.S. Postal Service.
"Their ask, at least a trillion [dollars], was not directly related to either the economy or the health situation with respect to COVID," he said.
He said Trump officials are willing to compromise on funding for school reopenings, an extension of the Paycheck Protection Program and boosted unemployment benefits if there is a "much more modest price tag."
"I always prefer tax cuts, and I always prefer incentives" to spending, Kudlow noted.
He said, even though the stock market has hit record highs, he acknowledged that "doesn’t mean the hardships are over."
He said traders are likely "heartened" by progress being made on a virus vaccine and new therapeutics as well as a recent drop in cases.
While he has predicted a "very strong" economic bounce back, he said, "we're not home yet, there's no question."
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.