Pandemic Relief Talks Inch Ahead, But McConnell Is Resistant

By Fred Cruz 10/21/2020327 views

FILE - In this Oct. 1, 2020, file photo Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell of Ky. walks towards the Senate floor on Capitol Hill in Washington. New virus relief will have to wait until after the November election. The architect of the Senate measure, McConnell, isn’t claiming the vote will advance the ball. Once the measure fails, he plans to turn the chamber's full attention to cementing a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court by confirming Judge Amy Coney Barrett. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

(AP) — Negotiations on a COVID-19 relief bill have taken a modest step forward, though time is running out and President Donald Trump’s most powerful Senate ally is pressing the White House not to move ahead. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has told fellow Republicans that he’s warned the White House not to divide the GOP by sealing a $2 trillion relief deal with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi before the Nov. 3 election. The White House says negotiations between Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin continue to bring modest progress. Pelosi says she wants a deal by Election Day, but the president will have to persuade McConnell to do it.