WASHINGTON — Frustrated negotiators of a massive coronavirus relief bill face heightened pressure with Thursday's brutal economic news and the rapidly approaching lapse in a $600 per-week expanded jobless benefit that has helped prop up consumer demand. Talks are at a standstill with few reasons for optimism despite sweeping agreement...
Senate GOP Proposes Policing Changes in ‘Justice Act’
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans unveiled proposed changes to police procedures and accountability Wednesday including an enhanced use-of-force database, restrictions on chokeholds and new commissions to study law enforcement and race, according to a draft obtained by The Associated Press. The “Justice Act” is the most ambitious GOP policing proposal in...
Trump Signs Executive Order on Police Reform
WASHINGTON — Following weeks of national protests since the death of George Floyd, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on policing Tuesday that he said would encourage better police practices and establish a database to keep track of officers with a history of excessive use-of-force complaints. In Rose Garden remarks,...
Dems’ New $3T Virus Bill Boosts State Aid, Essential Workers
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi unveiled a more than $3 trillion coronavirus aid package Tuesday, providing nearly $1 trillion for states and cities, “hazard pay” for essential workers and a new round of cash payments to individuals. The House is expected to vote on the package as soon as Friday, but...
Pelosi Pushes Ahead on Massive Virus Bill, but GOP Wary
WASHINGTON — Even in absentia, House Democrats are seeking to drive the debate on the fifth coronavirus response bill, promising to produce a mega-package stuffed with Democratic priorities despite a chorus of Republicans voicing hesitation about more spending. Speaker Nancy Pelosi promises that the Democratic-controlled House will deliver legislation to...
Pelosi Pushes New Virus Package as GOP Resists Big Spending
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pressed ahead Tuesday with the next coronavirus aid, a sweeping $800 billion-plus package that is expected to be unveiled soon even as the House stays closed while the Senate reopens in the pandemic. Key to any plan to reopen the economy, Democrats say, is robust testing....
Somber Congress Delivers Nearly $500B More in Virus Aid
WASHINGTON — Congress delivered a nearly $500 billion infusion of coronavirus spending Thursday, rushing new relief to employers and hospitals buckling under the strain of a pandemic that has claimed almost 50,000 American lives and one in six U.S. jobs. The measure passed almost unanimously, but the lopsided tally belies...
Congress, White House Reach High for Next Virus Bill
WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders are jolting ahead with another coronavirus rescue package as President Donald Trump indicated that Americans will need more aid during the stark pandemic and economic shutdown. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said another $1 trillion is needed, beyond the just-passed $2.2 trillion effort. She wants another round of direct payments...
House Debates $2.2T Virus Relief Bill Amid Last-Minute Snag
WASHINGTON — With exceptional resolve in an extraordinary time, the House on Friday debated a $2.2 trillion package tossing a life preserver to a U.S. economy and health care system left flailing by the coronavirus pandemic, even as one maverick Republican threatened leaders' plans for swift passage. Democratic and Republican leaders were working...
Trump, Congress Agree on $2 Trillion Virus Rescue Bill
The White House and Senate leaders of both parties announced agreement early Wednesday on unprecedented emergency legislation to rush sweeping aid to businesses, workers and a health care system slammed by the coronavirus pandemic. The urgently needed pandemic response measure is the largest economic rescue measure in history and is...