The Trump administration is open to resuming talks with Democrats and may be willing to add boost its coronavirus aid package if they can reach a compromise, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told CNBC in an interview.
“The president is determined to spend what we need to spend… We’re prepared to put more money on the table,” he said.
He didn’t say when he and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows would restart talks with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, which came to a standstill on Friday. “If we can get a fair deal we’re willing to do it this week,” Mnuchin added.
He said the administration and Democrats do agree on two areas — more funding for the Paycheck Protection Program for small businesses and another round of direct payments for up to $1,200 for individuals.
The two sides stand far apart on the size of their aid packages. Democrats have proposed a package that will cost at least $3T, while Republicans have said they don’t want to spend any more than $1T.
The Democrats want to continue the supplemental $600 per week of unemployment benefits, while Republicans put forth a plan to cut that supplemental benefit to $200 per week for a specified period of time than transition to paying 70% of what the unemployed person received before they lost their job.
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