The two top Republicans in the U.S. Congress vowed on Saturday to oppose Democrats’ demands to boost a proposed $250 billion bill to aid small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic by adding money for hospitals and state and local governments.
The statement from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House of Representatives Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy came a day after top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer said he and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin planned to hold bipartisan talks on the bill next week. “American workers are in crisis,” McConnell and McCarthy said. “This will not be Congress’s last word on COVID-19, but this crucial program needs funding now.