McConnell Says Covid Relief Talks Should Drop Liability, State Aid

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell suggested setting aside his top priority of business liability protections in exchange for Democrats dropping their demands for state government aid in a final 2020 pandemic relief package, a strategic retreat that could help reach deal.

Democrats have opposed McConnell’s insistence on giving employers a shield from lawsuits, while McConnell has been among Republicans blasting Democratic demands for assistance to state and local authorities as an improper bailout.

McConnell on Tuesday said both issues should be set aside and the focus put three areas where both parties agree help is needed: small business assistance, expanded unemployment insurance and funding for vaccine distribution and other anti-coronavirus efforts.

“We can’t leave without a Covid bill. The country needs it,” McConnell said at a news conference.

U.S. stock indexes were near their highs of the day after McConnell’s remarks, reversing earlier declines.

While the majority leader has not yet endorsed a $908 billion bipartisan Covid-19 relief proposal as a basis for talks, negotiators have continued to work on that plan. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer have backed that framework as a fresh starting point for negotiations.

Pelosi said Tuesday she remains optimistic about getting a deal but emphasized she considers it a bridge to another, larger package is proposed next year once President-elect Joe Biden takes office.

“Make no mistake, this is an emergency supplemental,” she said. “It is not a stimulus. It’s too small.”

Republicans earlier had balked at the six-month moratorium on lawsuits proposed in the bipartisan package, saying it was too limited.

The drafters of the proposal are planning to release a more detailed outline Tuesday afternoon, but without provisions on liability and state and local aid, said Sam Runyon, a spokesman for Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, one of the lawmakers involved.

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